The Tormentors In Person
by destinykeyblade
Summary: Lily and Angel, those two lovable gamers from the first two Tormentors fics, have been magically transported to the land of Hyrule to annoy Link even more. However, when one of them is captured, Link and the remaining girl must team up to save the other..
1. Of Video Games And Thunder Storms

For those of you have read _Link's Tormentors_ and _Not Again!! _this story should be fairly easy to follow. ...Well, except for Angel and Lily's insanity. I can't even follow that... Anyhow, this story was unknowingly/unintentionally requested by Kiarra-Chan, who read and reviewed the two fics mentioned above. (Thank you **SOOOOOOOOOO **much for that, Kiarra!) Now, please enjoy the randomness that is this story!! ...And my apologies. It starts out pretty slow. The craziness begins in the next chapter!

Link: Aren't you forgetting something, destinykeyblade?

Me: Huh? ...Oh! Right! The disclaimer!

Link: Yeah, that'd be what you forgot.

Me: -glares- Don't make me sic CJ on you!

Link: CJ's afraid of you!

Me: ...Don't make me sic me on you!

Link: You scare me.

Me: Aww, you too?

Link: -rolls eyes- destinykeyblade does not own The Legend of Zelda, although she does have a bunch of games, a player's guide for The Ocarina of Time, and a drawing of me that she did.

* * *

"Finally!" Lily exclaimed when she stepped outside. "I thought we'd never get out of that stupid school!"

Angel nodded in agreement. "Seriously, what a waste of time. ...So, you wanna come over and play some video games?"

"Yeah, 'cause video games don't waste time at all," Lily replied sarcastically.

Angel glared at her. "Do you want your game back or not?" she asked, referring to the copy of The Twilight Princess Lily had loaned her a week ago.

"Have you even played it?"

"Yes. For about five minutes. And then I figured out that that one's stupid and it sucks."

"You just don't like the graphics."

"I don't have much against the graphics; it's the Link wanna-be that ticks me off."

The two continued in this way during the walk to Angel's house, laughing at things said and people seen. (A: You suck! L: Yep. Just like a vacuum cleaner. A: Look, it's Crack Buddy! L: Hi, Crack Buddy! CB: HI!! A: Freak out, why don't you? L: SPAZ ATTACK!!)

After saying goodbye to Crack Buddy, Angel and Lily found themselves in front of a little blue house. "Hey, whaddaya know? We're here!" Angel said cheerfully.

"Hurry and open the door," Lily demanded, shivering as a cool autumn wind began to blow. "I'm freezing!"

"You and you temperature issues..." Angel muttered under her breath as she unlocked her front door. Then, louder, she said," But it's like, 60 degrees out here!"

"Exactly!"

This started an argument which lasted until the two teens sat down in front of the tv, where Angel sat happily with and old Nintendo 64 controller in her hands. The intro music for The Ocarina of Time started, along with the sound of Epona's hooves hitting the ground.

Lily glanced out the window where the trees and clouds were being blown around a little by the wind. _Hmm... looks like a storm might be coming._ She shrugged an turned back to the tv screen when she heard Angel start pressing buttons.

"Yay!" she said.

"Yay what?" Lily asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Aww!"

"Aww what?!"

Angel looked over at her friend, pouting. "I thought it was my turn to play, but since I did it last time, this is your day."

"Oh yeah, we did start talking turns, didn't we?"

"Uh-huh. Now hurry and take the controller! Quick, before I decide not to let you have it!"

Lily snatched the purple controller out of her friend's hands and began to play.

About thirty minutes later, the clouds were dark and the wind was really picking up. Angel picked up the phone and handed it to Lily, who called home and said that she was going to stay at Angel's until the storm blew over. When she put the telephone up, she saw that her companion had taken it upon herself to pick up where she herself had left off.

"Give me the controller," Lily said slowly, giving a death to the girl with long, brownish blonde hair.

Angel grinned nervously. "Ahaha, here you go. Hehe. He. Ahem. ...Yeah." She glanced out the window and did a double-take. "Huh. That doesn't look very friendly."

This was possibly the understatement of the year. The wind was howling. Lightning flashed. Thunder crashed. Rain lashed against the windows. And was that hail bouncing off the roof?...

"You didn't leave any windows open, did you?" Lily asked, pausing the game in the middle of a battle with a couple of Stalfos.

"Uh... no."

"Good."

"...Do you think we should go to the basement? Or at least to a room with fewer windows?"

"...Proabably."

"Then what are you doing?"

"Finishing this up so I can save your game. We accomplished a lot today," Lily reminded her friend.

Angel looked outside again. "Hurry up," was all she said. Right after she spoke, the power blinked out, leaving the girls in darkness for about five seconds, seeing as how they had neglected to turn any lights on. The tv came back on almost immedaitely, although the game did not.

"Quick, turn it off and then turn it back on to see if something messed up!" Angel shouted. She was very fond of her video games, this one particularly, and felt that she needed to know right off if something was wrong with it.

Lily followed the instructions wordlessly, thinking to herself that Angel was freaking out for no reason. However, when she switched the power back on and the screen went black, she changed her mind.

"Shouldn't something have happened by now?" she asked of her friend.

Angel was about to reply but was cut off by the sound of a man laughing. "That sounded like-"

She never got to finish, for at that moment, both Angel and Lily dissapeared.


	2. The Two Terrors

Hello again, everybody! I am pleased to present chapter two of The Tormentors In Person, which seems to be pretty popular... so I'd like to thank everyone who read the first chapter. I'd also like to give two really big, extra large, gigantic thank yous to my two reviewers, Kiarra-Chan and Vaatis Girlfriend! I love you guys!! Thanks sooooooooooooooooooo much for your reviews!! You have made one evil little authoress very happy. And just 'cause I've seen other people do it and it seems to work, I'll reply to reviews at them end of the chapter. Now, enjoy chappie numbah two!

* * *

-Hyrule-

Link yawned and stretched. The sun was just rising over the mountains, and fog lay like a blanket over the Kokiri Village.

The Hero of Time smiled. _I'm glad they let me come back here, even though I'm not a Kokiri. I'm not sur-_

"Link! Link! Link, come quick!" a frantic voice called, interrupting his thoughts.

Being the hero he was, Link jumped from the balcony of his tree house and ran toward the voice. One of the twins appeared in the fog, looking panicked and scared.

"What's the matter?" Link asked immediately upon reaching her.

"Oh, Link! You have to come help us; nobody knows what to do! We found two girls passed out in the Lost Woods and we can't wake them up! And they're big, like you, so we can't carry them out of the woods... Oh, what do we do?"

"You stay here," Link said, looking towards the gateway to the Lost Woods. "I'll go and see what I can do." With that, he started towards the entrance, leaving the Kokiri girl standing alone.

She watched him sprint into the forest, still looking fearful. As soon as he was gone, she smirked and began to grow taller. Quicker than you could say "what the heck?!", Princess Zelda was standing in her place. "It begins..." Zelda said to herself, and with a laugh worthy of the King of Evil, she dissapeared into thin air.

**-The Lost Woods-**

The music of the forest filled the air, but Link hardly noticed. He was completely absorbed in his search for the two girls who had, according to the Kokiri girl, mysteriously appeared in the forest.

_Darn it... I should have asked her where they were. This place is huge; they could be anywhere!_

Although no one ever really came into the Lost Woods if they could help it, Link looked around for someone he might be able to question. Coming into the part of the forest where he had tested his aim with his slingshot as a child, he saw two of the strange beings that inhabited the forest.

"Hey! Skull Kids!" he shouted, waving his arms to get their attention.

The forest dwellers looked up at him angrily. "What do you want, grown-up?" one asked irritably, crossing his arms. "Hurry and tell us; the sooner you talk, the sooner we can chase you away."

The Hero of Time blinked a couple of times. _I knew the Skull Kids didn't like adults, but that was just plain unfriendly._ He shook his head and asked if they knew the whereabouts of the two girls he was looking for.

"Huh... Well, I saw a bright flash of light coming from over there," the first one said, pointing to Link's left.

The other nodded in agreement. "Yeah, it was really hard to miss. Things like that don't exactly happen often around here. Think that was them showing up here?"

Link didn't answer; he simply started off in the direction the Skull Kid had pointed. When he stepped through the trees and into the clearing, he looked around... and sighed.

"There's no one here," he mumbled to himself. "I'll bet they were lying to me so I'd go away." He began to walk away, but a soft noise made him stop.

"Who's there?" he called, looking around.

"I am," a female voice answered.

"I'm here, too."

"...Lily? Angel?" Link asked, completely bewildered. Grinning, the two teenage girls came out of their hiding place in the trees and came to stand beside him.

"Hi, Link!" Angel said happily, waving at him.

The hero hung his head. "This is the worst day of my life..."

* * *

Alrighty, there it is. Hope everybody liked it. It was a bit short, but I had to do it that way. The next one will be longer; I promise. And now for review replies!

Kiarra-Chan - Do I really? I didn't know that. Honestly, I thought the ending of chapter one fell a little flat... Thanks, though! I like compliments. If that was a compliment... it could be seen as you saying that it's annoying... Hmm... Oh well, whatever it was, I'm still gonna say thank you! And you're welcome! I'm sure you noticed, but I did it again. -laughs- Yeah, I'm weird. Anyway, thanks for reviewing. And thanks for unintentionally getting me to start this story!

Vaatis Girlfriend - Wow, both of my loverly reviewers complemented me on a the cliffhanger I didn't know I wrote. Weird. ...An old lady man?? What does that mean?? Oh, and I looked back through the first chapter. All I found was that I forgot to add 'glare' after 'death,' so I fixed it. If you could possibly tell me what else you saw that I messed up, I'd appreciate it. OMGosh! A cookie? YAY!! Is it chocolate chip?! hahah lol ;)


	3. Terrornapped!

Wow, I can't believe people like thi story so much! I really didn't think it would be this popular! Thanks again to my reviewers, Kiarra-Chan and Vaatis Girlfriend, and thanks also to shaun832, who put this story on the alert list! You guys rock! And since I'm sure everyone's tired of my babbling, please enjoy the third installment of The Tormentors In Person!

* * *

"...told you already, I want to go to Lake Hylia first!" Angel said, glaring at Lily.

"And I say we go to Kakariko Village first!"

Link groaned mentally. He'd heard the two girls argue before, when he'd been stuck in their world, so he knew from experience that they could go on for hours. This particular argument had begun about seven minutes ago, when Link started to walk back to the Kokiri Village. Much to his dismay, Lily and Angel followed him, discussing the places in Hyrule they wanted to see.

"Well I say that's just too bad! We got sucked into my copy of the game, so I get to pick a spot before you! And besides, it was your turn to play, so-"

"Oh, like that makes any difference now that we're actually here!"

"It does make a difference!"

"Says who?"

"Says me!"

"Oh yeah? Well-"

"I say that both of you need to SHUT UP!" Link roared, unable to stand their arguing any longer.

Both Lily and Angel stopped and stared at him, shocked. After a moment, they began trailing after him again.

"Alright, Link. You don't have to be so mean, you know," Lily said, pouting a little.

Angel nodded in agreement. "Yeah. We were just having a friendly conversation."

Lily raised an eyebrow. "You call that friendly?"

The other girl shrugged. "I figure any argument is a friendly conversation, just so long as you're not bashing eachother's faces in."

"...I see." Lily said.

"Really? I do too! Not very good, since I don't have my contacts, but..."

This remark earned her a whack on the head. "I didn't mean like that, you smart aleck!"

Angel frowned. "You know, Lily, I-"

"There's the way to the village," Link said quickly, sensing another argument about to begin. The girls rushed out of the woods in front of him, eager to see what the forest and its inhabitants really looked like. Link hung back, trying to figure things out.

"Okay," he mumbled to himself. "I know who they are, and I know where they're from. But I don't know how they came here or why. And to make matters worse, I don't have the faintest idea of how to send them home!" The Hylian growled in frustration. "But I know I've got to figure something out before they turn the entire world upside down..."

All at once, an outburst of laughter and excited squeals reached Link's ears. "Oh, what now?" he muttered irritably, heading towards the sound.

"AAAAAAHHHHHH Oh my gosh!!" Angel squealed, jumping up and down like the lunatic she was. "Can you believe it, Lily?"

Lily was also dancing around and acting crazy. "No, I can't! Can you?"

"Nope!" And with that, the two of them began giggling madly.

"What is wrong with you?" Link asked when he arrived on the scene.

Angel smiled a demented little smile. "We just pinched ourselves and didn't wake up, which means we're already awake, which means we're really in Hyrule!"

Lily grinned as well. "Which means one of our dreams has come true, 'cause we've always dreamed of coming to Hyrule. ...Well, Angel has, anyway, because she has no social life."

Angel glared at Lily in silence for a moment. Then, without warning, the tall, dark haired girl was tackled to the ground by her short companion.

"Hey!" Link shouted, diving towards the wrestling girls and yanking them apart. "What's the matter with you two?!"

Angel shrugged. "I dunno. ...Maybe I'd straighten up if you took me to see Lake Hylia, though!" she said hopefully.

"Yeah, and I would if you took me to Kakariko Village!" Lily piped up.

Link sighed, but he gave in. "Alright, you win. Let's go."

Chattering and giggling happily, the two Earth girls followed the Hylian hero out of the Kokiri Forest and into Hyrule Field.

"Wow!" Angel exclaimed, blinking in the bright sunlight. "This is even bigger than it is on the game! And it's pretty dang big on there!"

Link ignored her ramblings and started off in the direction of the village. Lily noticed this and clapped her hands.

"Yay! We're going to the village first!"

Angel frowned and ran out in front of Link, making him stop. "Why are we going there? You're supposed to be taking us to the lake first, remember?"

Link rolled his eyes and pushed Angel out of his way. "The village is a lot closer than the lake, and I'm not in the mood to go traipsing all over Hyrule for your amusement."

Angel watched him continue on his way toward the Kakariko Village, feeling hurt. _I always wanted to come to Hyrule and hang out with Link. Now that I'm actually here, though... I think I want to go home._ Sighing, she decided she'd better follow Link and Lily, in case that Poe Ghost that liked to show up randomly and scare people chose her as its next victim.

Kakariko Village

"Cool..." Lily mumbled, looking around. "I always did want to know what this place was really like." She cast a sideways glance at Angel. "What do you think about it?" she asked, but she recieved no reply.

_Hmm... something's bothering her. A minute ago she was all excited about being here, but now... now it's like she doesn't care._

Lily looked around the village for something that might cheer her friend up. However, she got sidetracked when she saw the well, and ran toward it.

"Hey, come're!" she shouted upon reaching it and seeing that neither of her companions had followed her. Then, to herself, she said, "I wonder if the monsters are still in there..." and leaned over the edge to look in. A strange noise, like the wind rushing through the air, met her ears. "That sounds like a..." Lily's eyes grew wide, and she tried to get away from the well as quickly as possible. She had only taken a couple of steps, though, when a giant hand came out of the well and scuttled towards her. "Wallmaster!!" she screamed.

Link heard the cry and sprang into action, taking out the Master Sword and running toward the well. He saw out of the corner of his eye that Angel was heading for it as well.

_No, don't follow me!_ He thought despairingly. _You don't have a weapon; you'll get hurt!_

Lily screamed again as the Wallmaster stretched out one of its long fingers and pulled her to the ground. She saw Link and Angel both coming to her rescue, but when the hand closed around her, she knew it was too late. "Help meeeeeee!" she shouted as the monster jumped away. Before either of the others could do anything, the Wallmaster and its victim vanished into thin air.

"No! Lily!!" Angel cried.

* * *

Well, there you have it. Are you sucked into the story? I hope so! I try to keep it interesting. And now, that said, it''s time again for review replies.

Kiarra-Chan - There is truth in the statement _Reviews make me write faster_. At least for me, anyway. That might explain my rapid updating. Wonder no longer, my friend, for it has been revealed! ...Yeah, I'm random. Anyway... You think so? I wasn't sure about that part, but I guess it worked, huh? And I think I see what you mean about my knack for cliffhangers. I did it again in this chappie... I blame all the Nancy Drew books I read in fourth grade. And while I've never thought about writing mysteries, I do enjoy them. Hmm... that might be what my next fic is... some sort of mystery...

Vaatis Girlfriend - -bows- Thank you, thank you, you're too kind! ...Confusing? Uh-oh! It wasn't supposed to be! I guess it was a little unclear... The thing about writing is that while you as the author (or in my case, evil little authoress) know exactly what's going on, other people don't. Inside joke, huh? Kind of like the whole vacuum cleaner, Crack Buddy, and spaz attack things in the first chapter. -laughs- Okay, I totally understand that. I'm pretty picky myself; if somebody spells something wrong, and even when they say something, I jump in and try to correct them. Wow, really? Awesome! My story is loved! -dance- Yay for me, yay for me, yay for me! hahah lol


	4. A Depressing Discussion

EEP!! I haven't updated in like, forever! I'm sorry!! I'm afraid that as far as this story goes, I have come down with a severe case of writer's block. I'm really sorry... I WILL continue this story, but my updates will not happen on a regular schedule, I'm afraid. And while I've temporarily lost my ability to write this story, I have others. I'm going to start typing up a bunch of random oneshots I've written in my faithful notebook, The Random Book of Randomness. (I actually wrote that on a piece of paper and taped it to the front of my composition book.) Also, to try and get the creative and tormentor-y juices flowing again, I'm in the process of writing a new Tormentors fic. This one, titled **Of Bats, Bunnies, and Boredom** , is a Sonic the Hedgehog thing and features a new tormentor. I considered putting her in this story, but she just didn't fit into the Zelda scene. The Sonic scene, though... Anyway, I'll get that posted soon. Thank you to Kiarra-Chan, who was my only reviewer this time. Please read some of my other fics, 'Arra-Chan! (I only ask this so that you'll have something to take your mind off the fact that I'm updating very late and, hopefully, make you happy so I don't get an angry review of PM saying that I suck for keeping you waiting so long.)

* * *

"Lily!" Angel screamed. She looked around frantically, trying to locate the other girl.

"Angel..." Link said.

"No, where did it take her?! Got to find her, got to find her, got to find her..."

"Angel," Link repeated, louder this time.

"It can't have gotten too far... Think! If I were a Wallmaster, where would I-"

"Angel!" Link shouted. She whirled around and stared at him for a moment.

"....What?" she asked in a whisper.

Taking a deep breath, Link tried to word his response in a way that might calm her down. "Lily's long gone, Angel. She could be on the other side of Hyrule by now for all we kn-"

This was apparently the wrong thing to say, as Angel shrieked again and sprinted past the Hylian, trying to leave the village. Growling in frustration, Link grabbed her wrists as she ran past him.

"Ugh... Let me go!" she cried, struggling to pull out of his grasp.

"No," Link said in a low voice. "No, I won't. Not until you calm down and think for a minute."

He recieved a glare, but the teenage Earth girl stopped her wriggling.

"Thank you. Now, think about what just happened. Lily was kidnapped-"

"Which is why you need to let me go! I have to save her, Link; she's like the sister I don't have!!" Angel cried. Tears were beginning to stream down her face. "You obviously don't understand the pain of losing someone you care about."

"Oh, I understand. I think you're the one who doesn't get it."

Angel looked at him strangely, and the Hylian continued, releasing his captive as it became clear she wouldn't run off.

"I've lost plenty of people that I cared for in my lifetime. When Saria awakened as the Sage of the Forest Temple, she was taken to the Sacred Realm. If I wanted to talk to her before, I could just play her song on my Ocarina. But now... now I can't even do that."

The Earth girl blinked in confusion. "Why not?"

Link looked at the ground. "You may have noticed that Navi isn't with me. After I beat Ganon, she left. She was my connection with Saria, and now that she's gone, I've lost my two best friends. I know she was annoying and that I argued with her constantly, but I... I..." He lowered his voice. "...I miss her."

Angel was silent for a moment. Then, "I'm sorry."

"So am I."

~Link's POV~

_Why do I always have to be a hero? If I had just let the Wallmaster take Lily, I wouldn't have anything to do with this situation. But now that I've tried to save her and failed, I'm going to have to search Hyrule until I find her. Darn my heroic impulses..._

I looked at the remaining girl. She was extremely upset with me, and I doubted she'd agree to follow me anywhere, but if she wanted to survive she'd have to. Even after Ganon's defeat, Hyrule was a dangerous place, and as much as I disliked her, I didn't want to see Angel get hurt.

After studying her for a moment, I decided that the first thing we'd need to do would be to find her some new clothes; those ones from Earth made her stick out like a sore thumb. Fortunately, she was about the height of the average Hylian girl, maybe a little smaller.

_Now if only I knew someone who - Link, you idiot! How could you forget her? ...Great, now I'm talking to myself. I knew Lily and Angel had driven me insane._

~No One's POV~

"Come with me," Link commanded, starting for the exit of the village.

"Why?" Angel asked warily.

"Just trust me."

"I can't."

"Well why not?!" Link asked.

With solemnity that did not seem at all in her usual character, she replied, "Because trust cannot be freely given. It must be earned."

The Hylian hero simply stared at her for a moment. Slowly, he nodded in agreement with her statement. Looking at her questioningly, he started again towards the field. After a moment, Angel followed.

* * *

Review reply!

Kiarra-Chan - Well, I considered having Angel be the one kidnapped, but since she and Link aren't getting along very well right now, I figured I'd make them suffer.

Link: This is why she calls herself 'The Evil Little Authoress.'

Me: You know it!


	5. Ghosties And Ponies

Hello everyone! Look what I did! I got the next chapter out way beforte I thought I would! Aren't you proud of me?

Link: No.

Me: Why not?

Link: Because this chapter isn't funny.

Me: Yes it is!

Link: Not really. Maybe a little, but not really.

Me: ...MEANIE!! -goes off to cry in the emo corner-

Link: You are a sad, strange little girl. And you have my pity.

Me: ...GET OUT HERE AND DO THE DISCLAIMER!!

Voice: But I don't have anything to do with Zelda stuff!

Link: Just do what she says, alright?

Voice. Fine.

-Sabaku no Gaara from Naruto, my favorite character in the world as of right now, appears in the room-

Gaara: destinykeyblade does not own The Legend of Zelda, Link, Malon, Epona, or any of the characters in this story besides Angel.

Malon: Isn't Lily an OC?

Link: No.

Malon: ...I'm confused.

Me: Too bad! The only one I MIGHT explain this to is my wonderful reviewer, Kiarra-Chan, without whom I never even would have started this story. Thank you so much! Oh, and I've got that other Tormentor thing up if you'd like to read it. Just click on my little profile thingamabobbyjigger...

* * *

"Ooh ooh ooh! Ooh ooh ooh! Ooh ooh ooh ooh ooh..."

The red-headed girl sang happily as she stood by the corral, watching the horses inside run around and jump the obstacles every now and then. That was what she did. It was what she'd always done, and what she would always do: stand by and watch the horses while singing her little heart out.

Today however, she was interrupted by the arrival of an old friend.

"Malon!" came a cry. "Malon!"

She turned to see Link running towards her, looking quite relieved that she was present.

"Hi, Link!" she called happily, waving him over. "It's so good to see you again! I never got a chance to thank you for saving us all from-"

"Malon, I need your help." Link interrupted, a serious expression on his face.

Malon immediately grew worried and began interrogating her friend, stubbornly refusing to move from her spot until she knew everything.

Link sighed. _This is going to take up a lot of time that I don't have..._ Still, seeing that there was no other way to get Malon's assistance, he started into his tale. Malon was informed of Link's first encounter with Lily and Angel, their conversations quoted word-for-word. (The day stood out vividly in Link's mind, you see.) The second time he saw them was also explained, although not in great detail. Finally, Link told Malon of the events that had occurred that very morning in the Kokiri Forest and Kakariko Village. When he had finished hit story, Malon stared at him.

"Link?" she asked after a moment.

"What?"

"If all that's true, then... Where's Angel?"

Link's eyes grew wide, and he whirled around. The brownish-blonde haired girl was nowhere in sight. Groaning, Link headed back towards Hyrule Field, calling out her name as he did so.

Malon, who was worried about Link (and questioned his sanity), followed.

~Hyrule Field, Near The Gateway To Gerudo Valley~

"No! Bad Poe Ghost! You don't throw fire at people!" Angel shouted, jumping out of the way of yet another flame. The Poe, as you might expect, completely ignored her and continued to float around, reaching into its lantern every now and then to throw out another piece of its spectral fire.

Angel dodged yet again, narrowly this time. _I've got to be careful... He almost got me._ The Earthling began to imitate the ghost's circling movements in an attempt to stay away from it.

_Alright, Angel, think. How do you get rid of this ghost when you play the game? You have Link slash it with his sword. ...I don't have a sword. Nor do I have a bow and arrows or a horse or... a horse! That's it!_

Angel jumped backwards a few feet so that the ghost would have to come foward to hit her with anything. So in other words, she was buying herself some time. Taking a deep but rather hurried breath, she let out a string of musical notes, singing as loudly as was humanly possible. She listened hopefully as she dodged the flames once more, praying she'd hear the sound of Epona's hoofbeats on the ground. Her hopes were not in vain. The red horse appeared in just a matter of moments, thundering down the slope towards the girl and the ghost. The latter, upon seeing this magnificent creature, began backing away and quickly vanished into thin air.

Epona whinnied loudly and pawed the ground with her hoof. Angel ran her hand along the horse's face in way of petting, attention that Epona responded positively to. She nickered softly and nuzzled the Earthling for a moment, then tossed her head a bit and looked at Angel expectantly.

"Huh? What is it, girl?" Angel asked in confusion. Another loud whinny was her answer.

"....Oh! I get it! You're telling me to get on, aren't you?"

~Angel's POV~

Oh no. No, no, no! I can't! I can't ride a horse! I don't know how! The onnly ones I've ever ridden before were total psychopaths and tried to kill me! I can't do it!

These are the kinds of thoughts that were swirling around in my head as I looked at the Hylian horse in front of me. Now, I wanted to get up on Epona and ride around Hyrule Field, but I was just so... scared! Have you ever ridden a horse with another person on it and been the one that wasn't in the saddle? I have. Has your horse ever gotten scared of something stupid and freaked completely out? Mine has. Has your horse reared up too far? Mine has. Due to the horse rearing up as described, have you ever fallen off and landed on your back with a bunch of sticks and stuff jabbing into your back and said jabbing hurting even more because your dad landed on you?! I HAVE!!! And I tell you, it's not pleasant!! Are there any further questions as to why I was hesitant to mount the animal?

But, despite my uneasiness, I managed to walk up to Epona and somehow sling myself into the saddle. Once I was up there, I felt whole lot better. It was as if everything I was afraid of had just floated away, into the sky like a bubble... Anyhow, I took hold of the reins, made a clicking noise with my tounge, and turned Epona around to gallop up the hill she had come down to find me.

~No One's POV~

"Link!" Malon shouted, trying to catch up with her childhood friend. "Link, slow down!"

"And leave that lunatic to wreck Hyrule? No thank you!" he shouted back, and continued running.

"Ooh... When I get my hands on him, he's dead!" Malon growled to herself. To keep her red-headed fury in check, she began imaginaning the most lovely (by which I mean terrible and evil) ways to torture Link for his actions. All of the sudden, she saw Link stop, and ran foward to stand beside him. "What is it?" she asked quietly.

"Listen," was all he said in reply. So she did. For the first few moments, she heard nothing. Then, a faint noise reached her ears, a sound that made her wonder if she had been listening to the horses to much.

_Clip-clop, clip-clop, clip-clop, clip-clop..._

"Link?" she whispered.

"That can't be Epona, can it?" he asked.

"Link! Malon! Look at me!" a voice cried in delight. A girl with long, brownish-blonde hair riding a red horse seemingly appeared out of nowhere. The girl had a huge, demented grin on her face and was waving wildly to the Hylians with both hands... which ultimately caused her to fall off the horse.

Link groaned as the female, unfazed by the fall, sprang to her feet and ran over to them, the horse following. "Malon, this is Angel."

* * *

Kiarra-Chan - ...I CAN'T REMEMBER YOUR REVIEW!! My retarded dial-up is being... well, retarded, and I can't get to my inbox to read your review! ...But I do remember that you agreed with Link about the evil thing! That counts for something, right? ...RIGHT?!

Link: Nope.

Me: You are so mean to me!

Gaara: But you'll fix that, won't you, o evil little authoress?

Malon: OF DOOM!

Everyone: -blank stares-

Malon: You didn't finish it. The evil little authoress of doom! That's what she's called!

Me: -slowly- No it's not...

Malon: WELL IT IS NOW! MWAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH!!!!!!


	6. The Chapter Of Doom

-sigh- Hello, everyone... I'd like to apologize in advance for the incredibly short chapter. I'm afraid the writer's block I mentioned in chapter four has come back from its grave to haunt me...

Link: Is that even possible?

Me: Yes. Yes it is. Now quit saying useless stuff and do the disclaimer!

Link: Why do I have to do it?

Me: Because I forced Gaara to last time. It's your turn.

Link: -sighs- Fine. destinykeyblade does not own The Legend of Zelda, me, or any other characters that appear in this story other than her OCs. And you should know who they are by now. If you don't, you'r-

Me: That's enough, Link! I don't want you insulting my readers and reviewers. And speaking of readers and reviewers, I seem to have picked up a new one. Thank you, as always, to Kiarra-Chan, and thank you Starlll! That's my opinion on this story, too! ...Well, the crazy part, anyway.

Malon: Can we get on with the fic already? I'm getting bored.

Me: Sure. This Author's Note/comic is now over.

* * *

"Hiya, Malon!" Angel said happily. She waved and grinned like a lunatic at the red-headed girl.

"Uh, hello," Malon replied rather awkwardly.

A moment of silence passed as the two Hylians tried to think of what to do next. Angel was thinking a bunch of random things, such as "Oh look, a butterfly! I wish I could fly... I wonder where that big owl thingy is? Would he give me a ride? ...Wow, Link's cute! I bet Malon and Zelda would kill me for that. Everybody knows they both like him. ...Oh look, a butterfly!! (You see, before the strange event that pulled them into Hyrule, she and Lily had attacked Angel's stash of candy and sugary stuff, resulting in a long-lasting sugar rush. The Earth girls, while slightly crazy, were not usually this insane. Honestly, Angel was... actually, I'm not going to tell you. Her true nature will reveal itself soon enough. :P)

"...So I suppose we should... head back to the ranch?" Malon asked uncertainly, casting a glance at Link. He nodded, and the threesome made their way to their destination. Epona pranced along after them, whinnying every now and then out of what may have been boredom.

"Hmm... No, that doesn't suit you at all," Malon decided, and snatched the dress away from Angel.

"Why are we doing this?" the teen asked, completely lost.

Malon gave an aggravated sigh and rolled her eyes as she rummaged through her closet. "Because, oh crazy one, you stick out like a sore thumb wearing those Earth clothes, and the last thing Link wants is for you to draw attention to yourself. Therefore, you need to borrow something from me so you'll blend in. ...Believe it or not, you actually look like a Hylian. Well, minus the pointy ears." She threw a clothes hanger over her shoulder to get it out of her way.

"I see.... ACK!" Angel tried to dodge but failed, resulting in the metal item falling onto her head. "Ow!" she grumbled, rubbing the sore spot.

"Oops! I'm sorry!" Malon apologized, but she didn't come out of the closet.

_I bet she's hiding her face so I can't see her laughing, _Angel thought, frowning. _Nobody likes me here. Of course, it's no different back home. People hate me there, too. ...My life sucks!!_

"Let's see how this one looks..." Malon muttered, emerging from the cluttered closet of doom with a blue dress in her hands.

Angel sighed and took it from her, throwing it on over her clothes. "Uh, Malon? I think it's too big."

The Hylian girl let out a frustrated growl. "Darn it... that's the smallest one I've got! What are we gonna do now?!"

Sighing again, Angel pulled the dress of and threw it in the corner before sitting down on the floor. "Well, this is a fine little predicament we've gotten ourselves into," she said with what Malon interpereted as bitterness in her voice. "Lily's been kidnapped by a stupid Wallmaster, the two of us are stuck here in stupid Hyrule, _I'm _stuck with that stupid jerk Link, you don't own a single stupid dress that will fit me, th-"

"Okay okay, I get it! Everything's stupid!" Malon shouted, interrupting Angel's 'stupid' monologue. The red-head began massaging her temples; she felt a headache coming on, and it was a big one.

Footsteps were heard from outside the door. "What's with all the yelling in here?" Link asked, a touch of concern in his voice. He knew how easily Malon's temper could flare up. He was also aware that Angel was prone to rapid, random mood swings. These were serious mood swings, too; she could be telling a joke and laughing one minute and sobbing her heart out on your shoulder the next! Of course, this may just have been during sugar rushes, but Link didn't want to take any chances. A cat-fight that involved either of these girls would be bad, but to have them pitted against one another would have been... a disaster, for lack of a better word.

"Malon?" Link called. He recieved no answer. "Angel?" Silence. A note of panic in his voice, Link called the girls' names once more. Again getting no reply, Link pushed the door open and saw... the end of the extremely short chapter six!

* * *

Link: How dare you do that?! That's the stupidest endin-

Me: -attacks Link-

Malon: Remind me to stay on your good side...


	7. So Begins A Tale

Hello there! ...Again! Now, before we get started, I would like to make something clear. This may seem like I've written two chapters in one day, but I haven't. Chapter six has been finished for a couple of days now; I just haven't had the time to upload it. Chapter seven, however, was written today, all at one time, in about... oh, an hour and half, two hours. I am sorry to say that this chapter is not at all like those before it in the way of comedy. It's honestly not very funny at all. But I find that even the funniest of stories must have a serious moment every now and then. Otherwise, you get tired of the comedy and leave to find your enterainment elsewhere.

Me: Now... the disclaimer, if you please.

Malon: destiykeyblade does not own anything Zelda related. Well, other than her many video game copies and that picture that she drew of Link.

Gaara: Is it my turn yet?

Link: What are you doing here??

Gaara: I have something very important to tell the readers!

Malon: What is it?

Gaara: This chapter of The Tormentors in person was brought to you by Kingdom Hearts music that's so beautiful it's depressing and the authoress being in a very dark mood, the latter most likely caused by exposure to Shadow the Hedgehog and myself. We're both dark characters, and we've been in destinykeyblade's head today, so...

Me: You're wrong, Gaara.

Gaara: I am?

Link and Malon: He is?

Me: Yes. I am in a dark mood because...

Everyone: Because?

Me: ...BECAUSE I HAVE BEEN FORGOTTEN!!!

Link: Wha-

Me: I'm not telling you what I mean. I've been forgotten, and that's all I'll say. -coughs- Ahem. So sorry, folks. I hope I haven't scared you all away. If you're still here, please go ahead and read chapter seven, which I worked very hard on. I'm going to shut up now so you can hopefully enjoy yourselves. Goodbye.

* * *

~Angel's POV~

I gave a mental sigh. What I wouldn't have given to be back on Earth in my living room, whining about it being Lily's turn to play the Nintendo! Hyrule was pretty and all that, but I just didn't want to be here anymore. With another sigh inside my mind, I took a look around the room.

The wasn't a whole lot of furniture, and what was present was nothing fancy. A table near the window, a dresser in the corner, a mirror on the wall... stuff like that. Malon was sitting on the floor a few feet away from me, rubbing her head like she had a headache or something. My fault, no doubt. Everything was my fault, whether I was here in Hyrule or back home on Earth. And I couldn't do anything right. Which is probably why it was always my fault. No matter what the reason though, that's the way things were. I can't believe I ever thought that I could get away from all that if I was in a video game world! ...Wow, there were alot of I's in that sentence...

I heard footfalls from outside the door. Someone was coming up the stairs. The sound of Link's voice met my ears not a moment later. He was calling for Malon.

I glanced over at the red-haired Hylian girl. She was still just sitting there, not bothering to answer Link. Naturally, I didn't say anything when he said my name, either. I figured that if Malon didn't care enough to answer, I definitely shouldn't. He called our names again. I could hear the panic in his voice.

_I suppose he thinks we've killed eachother by now. Won't he be surprised when he comes in and finds us both alive? ...He'll probably be dissappointed, too. I know how much he hates me._

As you may have noticed, I tend to get a little more serious when Lily's not around. Also, by this time, the sugar was starting to wear off, and I was going back to my normal, rather insane, self. The RRMS (rapid random mood swings) are daily happenings. The dark moods are, too. Gotta love the darkness... Mwahahah. And silence is my friend- no, scratch that. It's more like a lover I can't live without. I usually talk when someone attempt to make conversation, (usually, not always) but if everyone else is quiet, so am I. And even when other people talk, I hold my tounge. It's not like any of them would listen anyway. I'm nothing but a thor-

"What's wrong with you two?" Link asked. I hadn't even noticed him come into the room.

"Nothing's wrong, Link!" Malon said cheerily, a terribly fake smile on her face. "What made you think something was amiss?"

"I don't know... Maybe it had something to do with the fact that neither of you would answer me a minute ago?" he asked sarcastically.

_Huh... I may get along with him yet._

Malon's awful smile got bigger. "Oh, I'm sorry, Link. I wasn't really paying attention when you called for me."

_Yeah. You were too busy trying to do what everyone else has and forget I exist._

I saw Link's frown ease up a little, but only for a moment. It came back when he shifted his gaze to me.

"...You're being quiet... why?" the blue-eyed blondie asked me, clearly puzzled.

I gave him no reply. My mind was busy... But even if it hadn't been, I had better things to do than listen to someone I dislike and who dislikes me. I couldn't help glancing at him, though. When I did, I saw that he had crouched down next to me. Worry and confusion were evident in the blue eyes that searched my own greenish ones, trying to find some sort of reason for my behavior.

"Why?" Link asked again, softly this time.

Just to get him to go away, I whispered the first thing that came to my mind. "Because there's nothing to say."

~Link's POV~

_What the-? Something isn't right. I've never seen her so... serious. What happened to the nutcase that used to torture me?!_

I just didn't make any sense! Angel was, in my mind, a goofy teenage girl that enjoyed tormenting me with the help of her best friend. It was true I didn't really know her, but this... this dark creature that was sitting in front of me... was nothing like the Angel that had been with me this morning.

Maybe something had changed when Lily got kidnapped? Or maybe I had been too mean to her. Or maybe this was the real Angel. Maybe this was how she really was... No. I didn't want to believe that. It had to be something else. After all, people can't change _that _much when they're sugar high, can they?

I think that moment right there was when I knew I had to help. A girl had been kidnapped by a Wallmaster that was no doubt working for someone evil. The remaining girl had quickly changed from the annoying, yet lovable girl I knew into a... a... there wasn't even a word! I knew that I would reunite these close friends so that they could be happy again... or I would die trying.

First though, I needed to find Angel _something _to wear. The jeans and T-shirt just flat out were not going to work. And even if she blended in, she would need something durable, not like the dresses I saw scattered across the room. Those wouldn't do either if she was to be roaming Hyrule with me. Where would I find something like that, though?

_.....Ha!_

All of the sudden, an idea popped into my head.

"Malon!" I said loudly, turning to face the farm girl.

"Y-yes, Link?" she stammered, suprised by my sudden outburst.

"Can you sew?"

~No One's POV~

"Almost..... there! It's finished!" Malon exclaimed happily. She hurried up the stairs to her room, dragging Angel along behind her and saying "Try it on!" over and over again. Without waiting for an ok, she pushed the Earthling through the door and tossed the clothing in at her. A couple minutes later, Angel came out of the bedroom, looking like she wanted to dissapear. Link's eyes widened when he gazed upon the girl.

She was clothed in an outfit much like his own, green color and everything. Now, though she wasn't exactly a supermodel, the tunic revealed what the large T-shirt had hidden - a figure. ...Was it just Link, or did her eyes suddenly look brighter and more sparkly because of the now noticable catch lights? And did her hair suddenly look like it was silky and soft and framing her face?

The blonde Hylian quickly turned his head, feeling his cheeks turn pink. _This... is not good._

A few hours later, (Malon having forced them to stay and eat lunch before they set out) Link and Angel could be seen leaving Lon Lon Ranch, riding two of the best horses in Hyrule. Link, of course, was riding Epona, and Angel was atop a black beauty of a creature, a magnificent horse she had taken a liking to immediately and affectionately named Shadow.

So begins a tale of hardship and friendship... of laughter and tears... and most of all... a tale of adventure and love...

**THE TORMENTORS IN PERSON  
****or  
****THE LOST ADVENTURE OF LINK**

**COMING SOON: CHAPTER EIGHT  
****AQUATIC SERENITY**


	8. Aquatic Serenity

Hi there! I'm finished with chapter eight!

Link: So, what's your exscuse for the late update?

Me: -sighs- Moles and trolls, moles and trolls...

Malon: You are always busy, aren't you?

Me: YES! And I dislike it with a passion!

Gaara: Too bad, so sad.

Me: -glares- Don't make me sic CJ on you.

Gaara: CJ's afraid of you, remember? He says you're evil.

Link: Now why would he say something like that?

Malon: Who is he???

Me: Oh, just some random obnoxious dude that used to be my cousin's friend. -clears throat- Ahem... now, on to the important stuff. Thanks again to my loyal reviewer Kiarra-Chan. LONG LIVE THE REVIEWER!!!!!!!!!! Also, I would like to tell you that this is another serious-ish chappie. We'll get back to the funny stuff soon, though, I promise! And another thing: Th-

Malon: Ooh, can I say it?

Me: No... I'm gonna let Sora do that.

Sora from Kingdom Hearts: Sweet! I'm in the comics! ^^

Me: Yes, yes, you must be very happy. Now will you please stop dancing around like a total baka and tell them what they need to be told?

Sora: -pouts- Alright. -looks at the readers- destinykeyblade would like you all to know that this chapter was, like the last one, written while listening to KH music. However, unlike the last one, this was written while listening to the Simple & Clean techno remix! (She was listening to Dearly Beloved for the last chappie.) For those of you who have played Kingdom Hearts, it's common knowledge that the S&C remix plays during one of the intro movies. For those of you who don't play and have never heard it, please follow the link (if the site will let you) to destinykeyblade's Project Playlist playlist. .com/user/17505199/view  
You'll find it on there along with a bunch of random songs.

Me: Sadly, it's the Japanese version. Now, I have nothing against Japanese music; I've even bought quite a few songs on iTunes. I just think that the English version of the techno thing is better. And a lot easier to sing. Seriously, man, the Japanese one is hard to do that fast!

Link: -yawns- Can we get on with the story now?

Me: Yes. Please enjoy, readers!

* * *

They rode in silence, the _clip-clop, clip-clop _of the horses' hooves the only sound. That is, until someone started shouting.

"Help! Please, someone help!" came the distant cry. Link pulled up on Eopna's reins and looked around, searching for the speaker. A figure appeared on the hill in front of them, waving his arms frantically to get Link's attention.

"Please, you have to help!" the man said upon reaching the blonde hero.

"What's going on?" Link demanded. _For all the yelling this guy's doing, it better not be something stupid, _he thought to himself.

"We've got trouble! Please, please, please, you have to do something!" the man begged. Link now recognized him as the one who ran the fishing place at Lake Hylia.

"I suppose the trouble's down at the lake?" he asked.

The fishing guy nodded vigorously. "Something's up at the Water Temple! There's a bunch of monsters and-"

He never got to finish his sentence, as Link had turned Epona toward Lake Hylia and dug his heels into her flanks. The red horse whinnied loudly and reared up before taking off at full speed.

Angel looked down at the fishing man from her perch atop Shadow. "We'll be back before you know it," she said reassuringly. "Come on, Shadow, let's go," she urged the horse quietly, stroking his neck. The black stallion quickly did as she asked, following Epona in the direction the lake.

~Lake Hylia~  
~Angel's POV~

"Whoa..." I remarked quietly.

Blue Tektites were hopping around all over the surface of the lake, the air was full of those annoying bird things that thought they were heat-seeking missiles, and to top it all off, Morpha was out of the stinkin' Water Temple!

I looked around a little frantically, searching for Link. Shadow and I had followed him here, and yet... I didn't see him anywhere. Of course, I didn't have my contacts in since I'd left them back on Earth, but even without them, I could see well enough to find a Hylian. Therefore, I had to wonder...

"WHERE THE HECK IS HE?!" I shouted angrily.

Big mistake. Every single monster present turned to look at me, evil glints in their eyes. And there I was, a stupid little teenager that didn't belong in Hyrule, riding a big black horse that was about to freak out. I had no idea how to fight, (since the only time I'd ever been in a fight, I'd been younger and softer than a hot doughnut, which, as you may not know, will get a hole in it if you poke it) I had no weapon, and the hero of the story was nowhere to be found. So, in other words, if Link didn't show up, I was dead.

As the creatures approached, I stared them down. I was hoping that they were like dogs. If they look like they're going to attack you, you just glare at them all mean and stuff like you're not scared and they'll go away. Most of the time. Apparently, though, Hyrulean monsters were _not_ like dogs. They kept coming, even with me giving them all a death glare.

Shadow pawed the ground nervously, gazing at the creatures in obvious fear. I stroked his neck comfortingly, wondering the whole time how we were supposed to make it out of this. As the evil creatures closed in on us, I heard a cry. It was more of a shout, actually. And it sounded strangely similar to "Catch!"

I turned my head just in time to see a short sword flying towards me, which I quickly reached out and caught so I wouldn't get stabbed. It was, of course, the Kokiri Sword, thrown to me by Link.

_...Wait a second... Link?_

I did a double-take when I saw the blonde Hylian. He was standing right outside the ring of monsters, looking relieved that I'd caught the sword. His expression relief changed quickly changed to one of... well, I don't know what. It wasn't anger, but... Determination. That's what it was. You see, hearing his yell, the monsters had turned their attention on him, and he was now drawing his sword.

Link was standing very near the lake, where the water-controlling nucleus Morpha was running around in circles. At least, it would have been if it was on land and had feet. The Tektites were slowly pushing Link closer to the water's edge, a very bad place to be since the demon of the Water Temple was loose.

Now, you're probably wondering why I'm telling you all this and not getting right to the action, but it's important to know where everything was in order for you to understand. (Shadow and I were near the waterfall, by the way.)

I watched with a sickening sinking feeling in my stomach as the evil beings backed Link into a corner (so to speak). I felt completely helpless... until I realized I had a sword in my hand. With this realization came a rush of adrenaline and powerful emotion. Before I knew it, I was running towards Link and the monsters as fast as was humanly possible, knowing that if I didn't get there soon... well, I had to get there soon. I had no idea what I was going to do when I reached my destination was very unclear, extremely fuzzy. That'd never stopped me before, though; I always did things without thinking them through.

~Five Minutes Later~

"Well, so much for that plan," Link muttered to me. "What now, genius?"

"Shut up, I'm working on it!" I whispered angrily.

Link had just started fighting when I got to him, and had almost slashed me with his sword as I made my way through the throng of Tektites, stabbing randomly as I did so. Many had fallen to our blades, but there were many more that had survived the onslaught. These survivors were now herding us towards the lake, where I knew Morpha waited to attack us. I glanced at the water demon anyway, just to see how close we were.

I wished I hadn't. I was about seven feet away from it; Link, being closer to the water, was five or six.

Before I tell you what happened next, you'll need to know a little bit more about me. I am known as The Queen of Randomness back on Earth, a title that truly fits. Random thoughts, random outbursts, random actions, random words... those would be mine. I'm bad to make split-second, spur-of-the-moment decisions, usually about very important things, and, as you might've guessed, things don't always end well when I do that.

This was one of those times that I decided at the last second to get us out of trouble... or try, anyway. Without any kind of warning, I tackled Link. The two of us rolled down the green, grassy hill, falling into the ice-cold Lake Hylia with a loud _SPLASH!_

Morpha saw us in the water and started towards us, summoning a tentacle to do its evil bidding.

Link and I rose to the surface, but only for a second. Taking as deep a breath as I could, I dove beneath the waves again, dragging the Hylian with me by his right hand. Pay very close attention to this little tidbit of information; you'll need it later.

_Alright.. there's the Water Temple, _I thought to myself. _It's not too far away... We can make it!_

Positive thinking isn't really my thing, but at this point had nothing else to think. Unless of course you count "We're gonna die!!!!!!!!!!!!" as something.

_Yes... Just a little farther and..._

My thoughts were interrupted by the water demon Morpha. The monster had been following us through the water, and was now close enough to grab us. Well, one of us. And that one just happened to be Link.

Morpha's watery tentacle grabbed hold of Link's left arm and began pulling him towards the nucleus. Fortunately, I still had a grip on his right hand, and immediately tried to pull him back to me. Our underwater struggle for survival had turned into a twisted game of tug-of-war... and Link was the rope!

To make matters worse, I knew I couldn't hold my breath much longer. My lungs were beginning to burn, and a strange light-headed feeling was stealing over me. A little voice in the back of my mind begged me to just let go, to stop torturing myself.

_No! _I shouted at the voice, and pulled harder on Link's hand. I saw his arm start to slide out of the tentacle's grasp. Feeling stronger due to my almost victory, I summoned all my strength and was somehow able to free him. Morpha, however, had given one final tug on the blonde's arm before relinquishing him to me.

Lack of oxygen was taking its toll as I swam one handed towards the entrance of the Water Temple. My lungs felt as though they would burst, I could hardly see where I was going anymore, and my heart was pounding unnaturally loud and hard. In short, I had almost reached the breaking point.

_Almost there... almost there... almost there..._

These were the only words I could think, and they echoed in my mind. To my great relief, I saw light above me. I could just make out a ledge right in front of me. Grabbing wildly, I managed to get a grip on the edge and pull myself up. I gasped for breath, filling my burning lungs with life-saving air. Sweet, sweet air! I vowed never to take it for granted again.

Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Link break the surface of the water beside me. He, too, was taking in deep breaths. That was to be expected, though, considering what we'd just been through.

After a few moments, I decided I shouled get out of the water. You know, in case Morpha came in and tried to kill us again. I drug myself up onto the platform thing with alot of trouble. Unlike Link, I wasn't used to this sort of thing.

_Speaking of Link... where'd he go? _I wondered. I glanced around and saw that he had used the Longshot to grapple across the water. He was now standing on that weird square thing that rose and fell with the water level in the temple. I saw him stand up and attempt to put his Longshot away. However, there was a problem.

He seemed to have used his right arm to get the weapon out and use it, but was trying to put it back in his pocket with his left. The Longshot clattered to the floor _(clang, clang clang!) _and Link grabbed his arm. His eyes were squeezed shut, and I heard a rather quiet grunt of pain. A muttered "Dern it!" followed this, and he threw his head to the left a bit. Then, he was quiet.

I'd seen my father do this plenty of times, after he'd injured his shoulder. The pain would dissapear... until he moved wrong. Judging by the pain Link was in right now, swinging a sword around would be pretty much impossible until he healed.

The silence in the Water Temple was shattered by two words that seemed to echo off the walls, uttered by none other than myself.

"Shiitake mushrooms."

* * *

Link: WHAT HAVE YOU DONE?!?!

Gaara: That's what you get for being mean to the authoress.

Link: -goes off on a rant that we all ignore-

Sora: ...Very misleading chapter title.

Me: Whaddaya mean?

Sora: 'Aquatic Serenity?' I think not. It was more like a waters-edge battle!

Me: But it was quiet and serene once they got inside the Water Temple!

Sora: ....No comment.

Malon: -giggles- You're cute!

Sora: -twitching-

Me: RUN, SORA! RUN FOR YOUR LIFE!!!

And so, Sora ran away with Malon following him. And now, it is time agai to reply to my reviewer.

Kiarra-Chan - Yay! Someone like me! ...I mean Angel! Join the club, 'Arra-Chan. We've got jackets lol! Think nothing of it, my friend; it was expected. ...And if you review this chapter, you'll get a cookie shaped like Link's hat! ^^ Thank you again for sticking with this; I don't know what I'd do with it if I didn't have your reviews. I'll try to update again ASAP, okies?


	9. Rocks

Hello and welcome... to the insanity that is the ninth chapter of The Tormentors In Person! Because of my promise that this would get funny again, I wrote some totally off-the-wall stuff in an attempt to make y'all laugh. I'm afraid I may have tried a bit too hard, but I hope it still gets the job done.

Link: I dislike you with a passion...

Me: -death glare- Shut up before I break your leg or something. I'm the writer, so I can do that.

Link: ...

Me: That's better!! ^^

Malon: Am I crazy-

Sora: YES!

Malon: -or do you have something better to do than threaten Link?

Me: Hmm... like what??

Malon: Oh, I don't know... a disclaimer, maybe?

Me: -snaps fingers- Oh yeah! I almost forgot! GAARA!!!

Gaara: My turn again?

Sora: Apparently.

Gaara: -sighs- Alright... destinykeyblade does not own any of the characters in this fanfiction other than Angel, the Dark Master, and his minions.

Me: And how do you know the Dark Master is a he??

Gaara: Well...

Me: That's right, you don't! You assumed! You have no idea who this mysterious character is!

Sora: So who is it?

Me: ...........I don't know.

Everyone: -anime fall-

Me: -giggles- Heehee... Whoopsie. Anyhow, thanks as always to Kiarra-Chan, who reviews every chapter of this insane little story.

* * *

In the silence of the empty Water Temple, time seemed to pass excruciatingly slowly. Angel had noticed this almost immediately, and after a couple of hours that felt like five, she was beginning to get restless.

Unfortunately for her, Morpha and the other monsters were still outside, waiting impatiently for the twosome that had escaped them to emerge. Therefore, the Earth girl was stuck inside the temple... with a whining Hylian.

I know what you're all thinking... and no, that isn't a typo. Link, Hyrule's hero, the defender of the innocent, the - well, you get the idea - was _whining. _And Angel was sick and tired of it.

"I cannot believe this! I simply cannot believe this! This is so wrong! I'm a hero; I can't get hurt! Heroes _do not_ get hurt!"

_The next time he opens his mouth, I'm gonna punch him,_ Angel thought savagely, her eye twitching as she looked at her blonde companion. Then, sighing, she looked towards the temple's exit. _I wonder how Lily's doing..._

~Earlier That Day~

"...Okay, I'm bored," Lily announced to thin air. Still in the Wallmaster's grip, she could do nothing to relieve her boredom. Well, nothing other than poke the giant hand. And that's exactly what she did.

Sadly, the creature (if it could be called that) did not respond to her poking in any way, which greatly dissapointed the dark brown-haired teenager. Lily sighed, quickly becoming bored again.

"I wonder where this thing is taking me?" she asked out loud. As if to answer her question, a sinister-looking castle appeared on the horizon, its spires lit by-

"Lightning? On a sunny day? Okay, this is getting to be waaaaaaaaaay too similar to a cartoon." Lily said. Time slowed, finally coming to a complete stop. Lily wriggled out of the Wallmaster's grasp and looked around, her hand on her hips.

"You listen here, little miss authoress! I absolutely refuse to be a character in a story that's like a cartoon! Either you fix this, or I quit!" she shouted angrily.

A voice from nowhere replied, also angry. "You can't quit! You signed a contract!!"

Lily crossed her arms and put her nose in the air. "I'll have you know that that contract's in my pocket at this very moment ant that I can rip it up at any given time."

"But why the heck would you do that?! You came to me and begged for a job!"

The brunette let out a quiet 'Hmph!' before looking around. "There are other places to work, you know," she informed the authoress as she surveyed the surrounding landscape. "I don't have to put up with you."

Silence reigned for a few moments as the writer thought about things. Finally, she burst out "FINE!!! I'll fix the stupid story!!"

Lily smirked triumphantly. "That's more like it, destinykeyblade. I knew you'd see it my way. ....So how are you gonna fix it?"

Now it was the authoress's turn to smirk. "Hehehe.... the Wallmaster has carried you to a corner of Hyrule that nobody's ever seen before... AND IT'S STORMING! SO YOU'RE ALL WET AND THE LIGHTNING BELONGS THERE! MWAHAHAHAHAHAHAH!!!!!!!!!!!!"

Lily's eyes grew wide. "Hey, that's not-" she started to protest, but it was too late. The story had started again.

The rain poured down on Lily and the Wallmaster as the hand approached its destination. Barely visible against the storm-darkened sky loomed an ominous black castle, its towering spires lit by flashes of lightning.

~About The Time Angel Starts To Wonder~

"OW! What'd you do that for?!"

Lily laughed and began doing a happy dance. Which was really a rather interesting thing to watch, seeing as how she was trapped inside a cage.

You see, the master of the Black Castle, (yep, that's what it's called... how original.) whom Lily had yet to see, had ordered his minions to lock her up and watch her so she couldn't escape. The dark master's followers, clueless though they were, happened to be extremely loyal and followed direction without a second thought. ...Or a first, for that matter.

So there Lily was, sitting in her little cage, amusing herself by throwing rocks at the minions. Where'd she get the rocks? Her pocket! No, not the one that had the contract in it. And why did she have rocks in he not-contract-holding pocket? Well... I honestly don't know. Lily's weird.

Anyway, though, that's how Lily was doing. Too bad we can't tell Angel all this... But that would be too easy, wouldn't it?

* * *

Link: Why did you make me quote Foster's Home For Imaginary Friends??

Malon: She didn't!

Link: Oh yes she did!

Malon: -hands on hips- When?

Me: I cannot believe this! I simply cannot believe this! You can't believe it? I can't believe it! Don't you like, live here or something? Look, Mr. Smartypants, maybe _YOU _should lead the way. Okay, I will. I'll... -goes on reciting all the dialogue from _Dinner Is Swerved_-

Gaara: ...That's just sad. She shouldn't know the entire episode by heart like that.

Sora: You said it, man.

Malon: Hey, wait a sec. How is she going to reply to 'Arra-Chan's review if she's busy quoting a cartoon?

Sora: She can't.

Malon: Which means...

Gaara: We'll have to do it for her!

Link: This'll be fun...

Kiarra-Chan - Both! XD Wow, and all this time I thought Sora belonged to Cassy... -shrugs- Guess he's changed ownership since the last time I talked to her lol. Cool! A compliment on the ending! Yay! ^^ Hmm... Snack Cakes, huh? That never even crossed my mind. I did consider Ramen Noodles, (blame the Naruto fanfics) but the mushrooms just seemed to fit better.

Me: -finally finished reciting- And now, readers of my story, I have a question for you! For a while now, something has been flying around in the emptiness that is my head, and it won't quit bugging me. Therefore, I would like to present this something to you. It happens to be an idea for the way this story will go. The idea is to have the teensiest little bit of romance. Just a one-sided thing, really; it won't be a really big part of the story or anything. Anyway, if you decide to review, (this is not directed at you, Kiarra, 'cause you always do) please let me know if I should do that or not. Thank you! destinykeyblade signing off!

Link: -muttering- She's such a dork...


	10. Friendship Forging or Into The Unknown

Hey, peoples! No, I haven't died, despite what you may have thought. It just took me a long time to get this longer-than-usual chapter written. I just finished it about five minutes ago, and... I'm really sorry I took so long. I'm aiming to have the next chapter up by Christmas.

Sora: But that only gives you fifteen days to write it!

Me: I know, but I have that one pretty much planned out. Some of the dialogue is still a little fuzzy, but I honestly think I can get it done.

Link: Well, someone's feeling confident.

Me: -growls- Why are you so negative?!

Link: Because you write the comics that way?! I don't know!

Gaara: Will you two just stop? This arguing isn't getting us anywwhere!

Malon: I agree with the scary boy!

Gaara: I'M NOT SCARY!

Me: Sorry pal, but you are kind of scary.

Gaara: -crosses his arms and refuses to look at any of us-

Me: -.-; Well, there goes my plan to have him do the disclaimer. Now I have to find somebody else.

Malon: -waving both hands in the air- Ooh, ooh, me! Me! Pick me!

Me: Hmm....

Malon: Me! Me! Me!

Me: How about...

Malon: Ooh, come on! Me! Please pick me!

Me: ...You, Trunks!

Malon: WHAT?!

Trunks from DBZ: Could you not see that the red-head was begging you?

Me: Yep. I dislike beggars.

Malon: You're so mean! -joins Gaara in not looking at people-

Sora: She's a lunatic!

Link: You have no idea.

Me: ...Well? Get on with it, Trunks! We don't have all day!

Trunks: -blushes a little- Right. Sorry. Ahem... destinykeyblade does not own The Legend of Zelda, Link, Morpha, Tektites, those bird things, Lake Hylia, the Water Temple, or anything else mentioned that came out of the video game. She also does not own the song _Indestructible_ by Disturbed, the lyrics to the song that she got off , or the menu music from _The Last Unicorn_. She does, however, own Angel, Shadow, the Dark Master, his cronies, and the Black Castle in which they reside. Oh, and the new and unexplored part of Hyrule that the castle's in. Also, she sends her thanks again to Kiarra-Chan, her reviewer.

Me: Very good, Trunks-kun! -hands him a cookie-

Trunks: ...Cool. Chocolate chip.

* * *

Night had fallen. Angel could tell from the darkness of the watery entrance. She guessed that she and Link had been inside the temple for about five hours, since they had arrived at Lake Hylia around midday and it was obviously autumn in Hyrule. (While riding Shadow to the lake and ignoring Link, the brownish-blonde haired girl had paid very close attention to the Hyrulean landscape.)

_Huh... I wonder what happened to Shadow and Epona?_ Angel wondered. _Horses are kind of smart; I don't think they would have just stood there and let themselves be attacked. Shadow probably high-tailed it out of there the moment I jumped off him._

She looked over at Link. He was still just sitting there, grumbling to himself. "That's just sad..." Angel remarked quietly, shaking her head. Her gaze traveled over the Hylian and to the portal that connected the Water Temple with the living world. ("It's as quiet as death in this place!" she'd shouted earlier, a bit unnerved by the silence. "Not anymore it's not," Link had said irritably.)

"....I've got to get out of here." the Earthling said. She did not try to keep her voice down.

Link cast her a sideways glance, curiosity shining in his blue eyes. "And how do you intend to do that?"

"Just like this," she replied in a low voice. In an instant she was dashing towards Link and the pile of possessions scattered on the floor around him. Angel didn't know when or why he'd emptied his pockets, (she didn't know why because she hadn't been listening when he explained) but she did know that she'd found her ticket out of the temple. And that ticket was a small, bluish wind instrument.

~Link's POV~

_What the heck is she doing?! _

That was all I could do, watch and wonder. With my arm in its current condition, (stupid Morpha...) it wasn't as if I could stop Angel by grabbing her wrists like I had back in Kakariko Village.

As she ran towards me, I searched her face for some clue as to what her plan might be. I saw her gaze fix on something, and followed that gaze to the Ocarina of Time.

I almost laughed. Even if she got the Ocarina, she couldn't do anything with it; she didn't know how to play the thing! ...Or did she? That determined gleam in her eyes made me uneasy.

_What if she does know how to play your Ocarina? Then what, Link? What are you going to do if she warps out of the temple and leaves you behind? Sit here until you die or Morpha comes back in to kill you?_

At that moment, Angel snatched the Ocarina up off the floor and, after wiping the mouthpiece on her sleeve, she raised the instrument to her lips. The melody of The Serenade of Water rang out clear and strong through the quiet temple, and I found myself lunging toward Angel, shouting "Not that one!" as I did so. She and I both knew where that would take us - right into Morpha's watery, waiting tentacles.

~Outside~  
~No One's POV~

Angel and Link appeared in a flash of blue light, said flash illuminating the inky, black darkness of the Hyrulean night. The moon was hidden behind a thick covering of clouds, making this darkness possible.

Link quietly cursed the blackness. "Dang it! We'll never make it out of here alive," he muttered.

Angel glared at him (or was that a tree she was looking at...?). "Don't be so sure," she whispered. "I have wasted countless hours in front of the TV, playing this video game. And I have the Official Player's Guide from Nintendo! I know Hyrule like the back of my hand."

This said, she used her hand to take hold of Link's - she was careful to grab his right - and lead him to the bridge.

"Step lightly," Angel told him. "You won't make much noise that way, and if we're quiet as mice, I think we can get to the field without being spotted."

The Hylian boy scoffed. "That's your plan?"

"Yep."

"If we last longer than ten seconds, I'm going to be very surprised."

~Link's POV~

Here I was in yet another wonderful situation. Thank you, Angel. Thank you. For trying to get me killed!!!

Did she honestly think that we could sneak past Morpha and the army of creatures that had followed her out of the temple? ...Apparently so, since she started dragging me across the bridge. I wondered vaguely what was going to happen if we were discovered. I didn't have to wonder very long, though.

One of those obnoxious black birds swooped down towards us, cawing loudly. Morpha's eye was immediately on us, as were those of the Tektites and whatever else that demon had working for it.

What happened next was completely unexpected, and I must admit I'm not quite sure how it all happened. I do know that in about two seconds, Angel had gone from standing in front of me with a clueless look on her face to hacking that bird to pieces with the Master Sword, a fierce, determined gleam in her eyes.

"Take that," she said darkly, glaring at the creature as it lay writhing on the ground.

I stared at her. "Wh-"

"Look out!" Angel shouted, and pushed me out of Morpha's reach. I hadn't even noticed the watery tendrils slithering through the air like snakes, and I had my suspicions that if Angel hadn't... well, I probably wouldn't be here to tell about it.

Now that she'd saved me, though, Angel was Morpha's target instead of myself. I saw the terror taking over her her as the demon came closer. You see, fear has a way of paralyzing people. Your blood turns to ice as it spreads through your veins, and no matter how badly you want to run from whatever's coming after you, you find that you can't move an inch from where you stand.

_This isn't gonna be good._

~Angel's POV~

_I'm dead. I'm dead. I'm gonna die! I'm dead!_

I had a sword in my hand, but I didn't know how to use it. A big scary demon thingy was coming straight for me. Link couldn't help me 'cause said demon thing hurt him. ...Yeah, I was pretty much done for.

The Master Sword started to slip out of my hand, and I quickly tightened my grip. It's a wonder I could hang on to it at all, what with my entire body trembling like it was.

Morpha, wielding multiple tentacles, rose up into my line of vision, the eyeball-like nucleus staring at me. Not wanting to see my end, I squeezed my eyes shut and turned my head, jabbing desperately toward the monster in a futile attempt to save my life.

I waited for the blow that would finish me... but it didn't come. Water began to splash on me and the ground, making me wonder what the heck was happening. When I opened my eyes, the first thing I saw was Link staring at me in amazement.

_Why's he looking at me like that? _I asked myself. _I couldn't have..._

I turned my attention to Morpha and saw, to my own astonishment, that the evil being had a sword sticking out of it. _My_ sword. (Well, Link's sword, but it was mine for now.)

With this sight I beheld came a realization: _I had beaten Morpha._ And with this realization, a single thought entered my mind.

_Time for the victory dance._

~No One's POV~

Angel danced around, yelling and squealing joyfully. The water around Morpha's nucleus had long since returned to the lake, and both the monster and the Master Sword had fallen to the ground at her feet. Seeing that their leader had been defeated so easily, the Tektites and black birds took their leave, bouncing and flying away as quickly as possible.

"HAH! YES! TAKE THAT, MORPHA! IN YOUR FACE!" the Earthling shouted excitedly. She grinned down at the creature in front of her before twirling off again. In her joy, she began to sing a not-so-joyful song.

_"Another mission  
__The powers have called me away  
__Another time  
__To carry the colors again  
__My motivation  
__An oath I've sworn to defend  
__To win the honor  
__Of coming back home again  
__No explanation  
__Will matter after we begin  
__Unlock the dark destroyer that's buried in me  
__My true vocation  
__And now my unfortunate friend  
__You will discover  
__A war you're unable to win_

_I'll have you know  
__That I've become..._

_  
__Indestructible!  
__Determination that is incorruptible!  
__From the other side  
__A terror to behold  
__Annihilation will be unavoidable  
__Every broken enemy will know  
__That their opponent had to be invincible  
__Take a last look around while you're alive  
__I'm an indestructible Master of War!"_

Link felt himself frown. Her song was quite dark and rather unpleasant, and the smile on her face as the words came forth made him uneasy.

_I'm aware that I know next to nothing about her, but... this kind of worries me. She's so... powerful. She clearly doesn't know it, but if she were a villain... I don't think anyone would be able to stop her._

He thought back to the day before at Lon Lon Ranch, to the darkness that had surrounded her, the bitterness and dislike in her eyes when she'd looked at him.

_Everybody's got a dark side, and if hers was to take over... Hyrule would be in deep trouble, to say the least. I've got to keep her from getting angry and depressed like that again. And the best way to do that would be to befriend her. If I can't... I don't even want to think about that._

Knowing the task that lay ahead was both comforting and unsettling for Link. Still, he knew what he had to do, and that it would be best if he started on that task at once. And besides that... Well, let's just say there was an empty room in his heart, and, though it would take a while, some unseen force was busy carving five letters into the door.

_A..._

* * *

Angel stopped after the chorus and looked around. "Hmm... I wonder how I should call Shadow? I mean, everybody knows Epona's Song, but what's Shadow's Song??" she asked out loud to no one in particular.

She gave her mental song library a quick search, selecting a melody that made her think of the black horse. (A/N: If any of you own _The Last Unicorn_ on DVD, you might want to put it in and listen to the menu music. If you don't have it... well, I'll figure something out. I might be able to e-mail you the music, 'cause I've got it on my computer.)

Very shortly after the music had erupted from her throat, the sound of galloping could be heard, and a black spot appeared on the lightening horizon. Night was nearly over, as the rising sun clearly showed. It was obvious that the horses hadn't run too far away from their riders.

Link had been watching Angel as she sang the tune that had become Shadow's Song, and noticed a strange glow coming from inside her pocket.

_The Ocarina!_

The Earth girl stroked her horse's black neck fondly, happy that he hadn't been hurt in the earlier battle. Giving him a final pat, she took a step backward and sang the notes of Epona's Song. The red Hylian horse was soon in front of her as well, whinnying and tossing her head around excitedly.

Link appeared by Angel's side silently and suddenly, startling her when he requested that she hand him the Ocarina.

"Why?" she asked warily, holding the bluish instrument in her hands.

"I need to see something."

When she continued to glare at him suspiciously, he sighed. "When you were singing that song, the Ocarina started to glow. I think that melody might do something other than call your horse to you," he explained.

Her frown dissapeared almost instantly, and she handed Link the Ocarina of Time.

"Sing that again, will you?" he asked, wiping the mouthpiece off on his sleeve.

The girl did as she was told, and Link followed along as best he could. Several times, he messed up, but when at last he had completed the song, the Ocarina sparkled as it had so many times in the past.

Angel's greenish eyes sparkled as well, and a smile began to spread across her face. "Wow!" she exclaimed, looking at the Ocarina excitedly. "I can't believe that a little-known tune from Earth is a song to be played on the legendary Ocarina of Time!"

Link manage to supress his own smile as he gazed upon the gleeful face of his companion. The happiness fell away suddenly, giving way to guilt and remorse.

"What's the matter?" he asked, concerned by the sudden change.

"I shouldn't have been like that in the temple," she said morosely, looking down at the ground as she spoke. Her long, brownish-blonde hair curtained around her face. "...I'm going back inside to get your stuff," she informed the Hylian. Before he could protest, she had run to the small island that connected the two bridges and jumped into the lake.

Link watched anxiously as Angel dissapeared under the waves, trying his best to watch her progress.

_Stop that, _he ordered himself. _After what she did yesterday, it should be obvious that she can get into the temple with no problem._

In no time, he saw her break the cerulean surface of Lake Hylia, several items in her arms. She flashed him a grin when she caught him looking at her and swam back to the island on which the warp point was located. To her surprise, Link was there to help her out of the water when she reached the edge.

"Thanks!" Angel said brightly as she wrung the water out of her hair. The teen was clearly very pleased with herself for retrieving his belongings.

Link inclined his head to her before gathering up his weapons, careful to use his right hand to put them away.

* * *

"So..." Angel looked at Link questioningly. "Are you going to play the song?" she asked.

The blonde nodded, taking out the Ocarina.

"Wait... What about Shadow and Epona? We'll probably need them. What if they can't find us after we warp to wherever it is this song's gonna take us?"

Link thought for a moment. "Well... Let's see... We'll try this: You and I will get on our horses. Since I'll be touching Epona, she'll come with, and if you reach out and hang onto her mane or something, you and Shadow should go, too."

Angel nodded. "Right."

Once the two were on their mounts and Angel had a firm grip on Epona's reins, Link raised the Ocarina of Time to his lips and played his new melody. The two horses and their riders vanished then in a whirl of midnight-black sparkles.

* * *

Angel gazed around her in confusion. "I've never seen this place before..." she murmured as she looked at the unfamiliar hills and distant mountains. "Where are we, Link?" the girl asked her partner.

Link was silent for the better part of three minutes. Finally, he spoke up. "...I'm not sure."

* * *

Hehe... went a little crazy with the lines there. Sorry 'bout that. ^^;

Link: Save the apologies.

Trunks: Quit being so mean to the authoress, Link! -he and Link glare at eachother-

Me: -pushes them apart- Knock it off, you two. I have a review to answer, and I can't do that if you're trying murder one another.

Kiarra-Chan - The reviewer has spoken! Romance it is! I'll try not to let it move too fast... I'm bad for making love blossom a little too soon, among other flaws. If anyone knows me from Quizilla or is one of my friends, they are no doubt well aware of that. Yeah, I don't think many people have seen a Hylian whine (unless it was Zelda, of course) lol. Thanks; I might consider that. I looked at them the other day, but I can't remember what any of them were... That's why I have this little notebook that I fill with random quotes. (I've filled up twenty of those pages...)

Also, I want to let you know (this is to 'Arra-Chan and anyone else who reads this) : After Christmas, I may take a short break from this story to work on some others that I've been neglecting as of late. Not to mention I'm in the middle of reading Brisingr by Christopher Paolini and The Lord of the Rings series by J.R.R. Tolkien, and attempting to write my own book as well. Just wanted to let you know all that. I will continue to up-date this story, though; don't worry about that.

One last thing before I let you go: I have planned out four different endings to this story. It all depends on what you, my readers, want. Would you like an ending that is slightly sad, one that is happy, or one that, while it finishes the story, leaves room for a sequel?


	11. Villainy 101

Look, I did it! I got it out before Christmas! Consider this you early present, readers. I hope you like it!! ^^ ...And now, to completely change the subject, I think I may have too many characters in my comics. Therefore...

Me: -dramatic voice- Today on Total Drama Island-

Sora: This isn't Total Drama Island!

Me: Nope.

Link: You don't even watch that show.

Me: Nope.

Malon: Is that all you can say?

Me: Nope.

Gaara: Are you gonna say something else?

Me: Nope.

Malon: ...Will you tell us why you're not saying anything else?

Me: Nope.

Link: -irritated- You wanna knock that off?

Me: NOPE!! :P

Link: AAAAARRRGH!

Sora: Yeah, pretty much.

Trunks: -walks over to me- Will you please stop saying nope?

Me: -glomps him- YEP!! ^^

Gaara: Nice... he made her stop.

Sora: Yeah... maybe we should keep this guy around. Think so, Link?

Link: Nope.

-giggles- I've had that in my head for weeks now; so glad I finally typed it. Anyway, thanks as always to Kiarra-Chan, and, as I'm sure you know, I own no one and nothing but Angel, the Dark Master and his minions, and the Black Castle. Oh, and the little girl.

Malon: What little girl??

Me: You'll see! ^^

* * *

"WHADDAYA MEAN YOU'RE NOT SURE?!" Angel shrieked, waving her arms around wildly.

"I mean what I said," Link answered, trying not to laugh at her actions. She looked incredibly ridiculous. In fact, the way she was flailing reminded him of the time he had gone inside Jabu-Jabu to rescue Princess Ruto. The Zora princess had made similar motions with her arms when Link had, in her opinion, been standing in one place for too long.

"But... but... but..." She stared at him in obvious confusion, unable to complete a sentence for over two minutes. Finally, she forced out "But _why _don't you know where we are?"

"Becuase, Angel," Link replied, "I've never been here before."

The fourteen year-old seemed to have lost her ability to speak. Seeing this, Link took hold of Epona's reins and turned her in the direction of the far-off mountains.

"Let's go," he said. Without another word, he urged Epona to begin running, which the red Hylian horse did without much hesitation.

Angel stared after her blonde companion, wondering how he could be so calm when he was up to his pointy, elf-like ears in unknown territory, and, most likely, hidden danger.

_Baka... That's one of the first rules of being a warrior: Never show your fear. You should know that by now, _she berated herself, feeling the need to use the Japanese word instead the English. _Now do something intelligent and follow Link before you get killed by some random bad guy that might not even exist. ...I make the most sense of anyone I know,_ she thought sarcastically.

"Come on, Shadow," she commanded the stallion, and made a snapping noise with the reins. Shadow pranced about for a moment, trying to get used to the uneven ground. Then, noticing Epona dissapear over a hill, he whinnied loudly and tore into a run. Angel, startled by his sudden actions, tried to remember comforting lines from horse books to slow her heart, which pounded as hard as Shadow's hooves against the earth.

~Elsewhere~

Flames towered high above the burning village. A thick, black smoke filled the shriek-filled air, making the villagers' eyes sting as they ran through it. Some called out in vain for their families and friends, while others sought merely to escape with their lives.

Amid all the chaos, a woman stood with her daughter, a frightened child of about ten.

"Listen to me very carefully, my child," the mother said. "I want you to promise me that you will run as far away from this place as you can. You know the way to the other village, where your grandmother lives. I want you to go there and stay with her until I get there," she instructed.

The child's sky blue eyes sparkled with unshed tears. "But-" she attempted to protest, but was cut off by her mother's voice.

"Promise me!" she begged.

"...Yes, mother..." the little girl said. "I promise."

"Thank, you, my child." The woman pushed her daughter away, toward the exit of their village. Squinting through the smoke, she could just see the young girl's figure dissapear.

"Be carefu-" she started to say, but was cut off by a maniac's laughter from somewhere behind her.

"Who are you?" she demanded, searching for the man who had attacked the village.

"Who am I? Who am I?! How can you not know who I am?!" the voice shouted, clearly upset. "The sound of my voice is supposed to strike fear in the hearts of the Hyruleans! Aren't you scared of me?"

"No," the woman replied.

"Not even a little bit?" he asked, sounding crestfallen.

"No."

"Darn it!"

A _whoosh!_ could be heard over the roar of the fires, but the voice had vanished.

"Good riddance," the woman muttered before rushing off into the smoke to help her fellow villagers.

~With Link And Angel~

Angel was exploring her surroundings when she came uopn Link, who had left her earlier after she made a comment about being hungry. A rabbit had been caught in his hastily crafted snare, and while the creature wasn't exactly big, it was large enough so that they would be able to eat something.

Link held the Kokiri sword in his right hand above the squealing animal, but to Angel's surprise, the Hylian didn't strike. Instead, he heaved a sigh and untied the rabbit's trapped foot. The frightened bunny scampered off into the bushes as quick as it could.

"What did you do that for?" Angel shouted. (Hey, she was hungry!) "Why didn't you just kill it, Link?"

Link rose from his crouching position and slowly turned to face her. "You can't _just kill_ something," he said darkly. "Every creature has a right to live, even the monsters we fight. I know they have to be killed in order for us to survive, but sometimes I hate that I've slaughtered them. Every time they come at me, I pray that they'll decide to leave me alone, but the never do, and-"

He broke off and looked at Angel. "Why are you staring at me like that?"

"Oh, sorry. It's just that you reminded me of a book I read recently."

"What book?" Link asked curiously.

Angel sat down in the grass, guessing that she'd be talking for a while. "It's called Brisingr, and it's the third book in the Eragon series, also known as the Inheritance Cycle. The main character, Eragon..."

* * *

About an hour and a half later, Angel had successfully explained most of Alagaesia to Link, making sure she included everything she knew about the dragons.

"...And they have this thing inside of them called-"

"You like dragons, don't you?" Link interrupted, looking amused.

The teenage Earth girl jumped up and cast a wistful look skyward, her hands clasped in front of her chest. "Oh, yes," she said, longing evident in her voice. "I wish there were dragons in Hyrule, or that I could be in Alagaesia with them."

"So I suppose if you were around dragons, you'd want to be a Rider, huh?"

"No way," Angel said, surprising him. "No. I wouldn't be able to handle it."

Link looked at her, confused. "What do you mean?"

Still looking up at the blue sky, she lowered her hands to rest at her sides. "People tell eachother all the time 'I'm counting on you.' But when they really mean it, and someone is honestly depending on you to do something important for them..." Angel shook her head and looked at Link over her shoulder. A twinkle appeared in her greenish eyes when she gazed at him, and for some reason, the blonde Hylian felt his heart best faster for a brief moment.

"I wouldn't be able to deal with the responsibility or the stress that came with the whole Dragon Rider thing. I almost lost it earlier when I had to fight Morpha," she informed him. "If I hadn't been fighting for our lives, I wouldn't have been able to stand there like that. I'd have run around screaming my head off or something stupid like that."

A sudden gust of wind blew her long hair into her face. As she struggled to push it away, Link stood and unbuckled the strap that held the Master Sword in place.

"Here," he said after Angel had tamed her hair, holding the sword out to her. "It would make a lot more sense for you to carry this since I can't fight with it."

And so began another struggle, this time to get the sword strapped on. After five minutes of watching her fight with it, Link took pity on Angel and helped her.

"Thanks," she said sheepishly, a blush creeping onto her face. "I should have been able to do that without help..."

Link shrugged her apology off and lay down in the long, soft grass. The sun was beginning to set, casting an orange-ish glow across the land. The wind whispered through the grass and trees, telling its story to any and all who would listen. Somewhere in the distance, a brook babbled on, knowing that no one would pay attention to what such a small stream had to say and not caring a bit.

Angel sat down as quietly as she could. She knew from playing her video games so often that the Master Sword made many clinking noises when it moved, and was in no mood to hear them right now. For now, the sounds of nature and of her friend's steady breathing were enough for her. (Wow, Link must have been tired if he fell asleep that fast!)

_It's so peaceful here..._ she thought to herself. _I bet everywhere in this part of Hyrule is quiet and calm like this._

Not quite, Angel. Not quite.

~The Black Castle~

The Dark Master stomped around, ranting and raving. Lily, trapped in her little cage, couldn't help but hear bits and pieces of it. When she heard "What does a villain have to do to get a little respect?!" her devious little mind quickly devised a plan to send her boredom packing.

"I know what you should do," she said loudly, leaning foward to look at the Dark Master through the bars.

"You do?" he asked excitedly.

Lily tried hard to supress a laugh. "Yeah, I do.

"What?"

The fourteen year-old smirked. _This is gonna be fun... Mwahahah._

* * *

"Alright, let's review," Lily said.

The Dark Master sat in front of her cage, a notepad on his lap and a quill pen in his hand. His minions sat in a group about five feet away, looking at Lily admiringly. To them, she was the smartest person in the world right then.

"When someone asks you who you are..." Lily began.

Her pupil immmediately launched into his answer, reading off the paper in his hands. "I use my magic to float in the air and summon up a wind so that my cape will flutter dramatically in the breeze. Then I answer with any of the following: I am your worst nightmare; your destroyer; the last person you will ever see..."

"Or?" the Earth teen prompted.

"Or... Ahem... I am the Dark Master, the most powerful wizard in Hyrule! The very mention of my name terrifies even the bravest and strongest of warriors! I will rule this land, and all shall tremble at my feet! TREMBLE!!!!" he shouted.

Lily snickered behind her hand. She'd had the Dark Loser fill up five pages of his notebook with the words and behavior of the worst cartoon bad guys on Earth, and by worst I mean the stupidest and least threatening.

"Very good," she managed to say. "You might be a great villain yet!"

The Dark Master danced around like a happy child. His minions joined in, as they practically were children (well, mentally anyways) and didn't want to miss out on the fun. And as all this went on, Lily sat in her cage and watched, her shoulders shaking with silent laughter. Evil little girl, isn't she?

* * *

Kiarra-Chan - That should be illegal!!! ...I just spelled that wrong, didn't I? hahah lol. And now, a question for you: Have you noticed that these reviews and replies have become somthing of an on-going conversation between us?? Now for the important question two, which I asked at the end of the last chapter. What kind of ending do you want? I kind of need to know...


	12. Damselette In Distress

Hey, I'm back!

Link: With a short chapter.

Me: -death glare- Shut your mouth, blondie. -pushes Link out of the room- Now then! As Link so rudely pointed out-

Link: -banging on the door- Let me in!!

Me: -this is a rather short chapter. I assure you, though, I've started writing again.

Malon: -whispers behind hand- She stopped for over a week!

Gaara: You know she can hear you, right?

Malon: SCARY DUDE!!!

Gaara: ...I hate you.

Malon: That's secret code for I love you.

Gaara: No, that's secret code for I hate you.

Me: Guys! Can we please focus? These people want to read a story, not listen to you two babble all day! -clears thoat- SORA!!!!!!!!

Sora: What?

Me: Disclaimer, please!

Sora: -sighs- Okay. destinykeyblade owns nothing but Angel, the Dark Master, his minions, the Black Castle, and the not-so-random little girl. Also, she would like to thank Kiarra-Chan (as always), and her two new reviewers, Shepherd'sPurse and MegamanSora... Hey, I'm not Megaman!!!!

Me: Thank you, Sora.

Sora: Yeah, yeah... Guess what?

All (including Link, who somehow mananged to get back in): What?

Sora: -pauses dramatically- .....TRUNKS FOUND A KITTEN!!!!!!

All: WHAT?!?!?!?!?!?!

Trunks: -comes in holding said animal- Isn't she cute? Wow, look how dark a black her fur is! I think I'll call her Midnite...

Me: -facepalms watching Trunks and everyone else dangle strings in front of Midnite, who is now very confused- Just what we needed...

* * *

_Shhhiiiiiiiing! Swooosh! Swiiish! Shhhhiiifffff..._

Link opened his eyes slowly. The sky was dark and filled with twinkling stars. A thin crescent moon sat directly over him, the outline of the rest of the moon visible from its glow.

_That sounded like a sword..._ the Hylian thought, and began glancing around. He saw nothing around him that would have made those sounds, and after a few moments began to wonder if he had simply imagined it.

_Swoosh! Swiissshhhh!_

There it was again! Someone had a blade, and that someone was very close.

_But who?_ Link wondered. _Who could it- Wait a minute..._

"Angel?" he whispered. Silence was his reply, and the noises continued. Yawning, Link rose to his feet and headed in the direction of the sword sounds. The further he went, the louder they got, and yet he couldn't seem to pinpoint the exact location they came from.

"Where are you?" he mumbled, looking everywhere he thought Angel could be. A conviently placed tree became his prop; he leaned on it as he searched for his missing companion. Several more trees dotted the hilly area, tall and good for climbing. A few even looked as though, once in it, you could stand on the branches.

An arrow whizzed through the air, and Link jumped to the side. It embedded itself deep within the bark of the tree, coming extremely close to hitting his ear.

_Okay... this was clearly a bad idea,_ the blonde decided. _I think A- Whoah!_

A barrage of arrows came his way, and as he dodged, Link noticed something oddly familiar about them.

"Hey, these are my arrows!" he exclaimed, seeing the tufts on the shafts.

"Link?" came a voice from somewhere to his right. Angel appeared, hanging onto a tree brach and staring at him in surprise. The Fairy Bow hung from her sword belt, its string on the buckle. "What are you doing here?"

"I should be asking you that," Link said. "Along with the question, 'What in the world are you doing?' ...And how the heck did you get up in that tree?"

Angel dropped to the ground. Smiling apologetically, she walked towards Link and began looking him over, making sure none of her arrows had made their mark.

"Sorry 'bout that," she said as she checked him out. "And to answer your questions: 1) I was practicing with my - erm, your - weapons, 2) I was defending myself because I didn't know you were you, and 3) I climbed." Satisfied, the girl stepped away and looked at him with mock curiosity. "How else do you get in a tree?" she asked, grinning.

Link rolled his eyes. He was glad that it was dark. Judging from how hot his face had become, he guessed that he must be blushing rather badly, and that was something he didn't want Angel to know. Not to mention he didn't know how she would react to his eye rolling...

* * *

~Link's POV~

I shook my head as I watched Angel practically fall backwards into the verdant grass, sighing contendedly.

"Don't you think we should get going?" I asked. "Lily isn't going to rescue herself, you know."

My companion sat up and shook her head, her russet locks falling like curtains across her shoulders. "No, I don't think we should get going. Lily's fine; I know it. She always is. ...Well, except for that time in second grade when she and I were sitting in the library floor at school and that jerk Jamie came over and tried to jump over us and he made it over me but kicked Lily in the head and we all thought he'd given her some kind of concussion or something but-"

She stopped and took a few deep breaths. "But in the end, she really was fine, so even then she was alright." The lunatic just looked at me then, smiling. After a moment passed and I had made no reply, Angel laid down in the grass again, but not before she had taken the Master Sword off and tossed it to the side.

"You know..." she said softly, "this place is really nice. Rolling hills as far as the eye can see, and they're all lush and green even though it's getting to be winter here in Hyrule." She glanced at the sword. "I'd love to just forget about fighting and violence and evil... And I'd love to stay here. Forever. With someone that I love."

Then, to my great surprise, Angel began to sing. The sound was beautiful, and yet it held a certain haunting quality along with a great deal of sadness.

_"I would lay down my sword_

_If you'd give me your word_

_That you would always be_

_Here in the emerald hills with me..."_

Her voice trailed off, and she rose to her feet, picking up the weapon she'd tossed aside. I stared at her, half in confusion at her actions and half in amazement at her song.

"That won't be happening anytime soon, though," she said. "I don't have anyone that I love. Well, except maybe the cat in my imagination. I'm not allowed to have a real one... Link?"

Angel was frowning at me, concern shining in those captivating green eyes of hers. "Link, what's the matter?"

"Where did that come from?"

She blinked a few times. "What?"

"That song!"

"Oh, that?" she laughed. "I made it up just now." Smiling at me as though I had just said something extremely silly, she pulled the Master Sword out of its sheath and ran to a bush a few feet away from where she stood. She made to slash at it, but before the first blow fell, a loud squeak of fright came from inside the shrub.

"Huh?" Angel asked in confusion. Cocking her head, she pushed aside some leaves aside and looked about just as I came up behind her. Hey, I wanted to know what was going on, too!

"Please don't hurt me!" a small and feminine-sounding voice squealed. I was astonished to see the top of a child's head appear from somewhere inside the plant.

A little girl (and when I say little, I mean young and small for what I supposed her age was) sat in front of us, tears streaming down her dirty face. Her dress, which reminded me of the one Malon usually wore, was torn and muddy. Her tear-filled eyes were the brightest and clearest blue I had ever seen. With what seemed to be pale skin underneath all the filth and unkempt black hair to top it all off, I had to admit that this child was the strangest looking thing I had seen in a good while.

Angel threw her sword - well, hers for the time being, anyway - to the ground and picked the girl up, hugging her in an attempt to stop the flow of her tears. "We would never hurt you!" she exclaimed. The girl wrapped her arms around Angel's neck, and my fourteen year-old companion turned to me. "It's a darn good thing I'm not worried about Lily," she said. " 'Cause I think we just took on another quest."

* * *

Well, there you go! Hope you enjoyed it; we're getting to the good stuff now. Won't be long 'til... whoops! Can't tell you yet! And now, it is time again for me to reply to your loverly reviews, which I thank you so much for submitting.

* * *

Shepherd'sPurse - Oh my gosh... This is the longest and nicest review I've ever gotten for this story! Thank you so much!! ^^ 'Specially for the comment on my characters. I try really hard to make them cool/crazy. (I'm constantly worried that Lily is OOC, seeing as how she's based on someone I know. 0.o) Anyway... Really? Yay! For once in my life I'm not making people fall in love too fast! -victory dance- You have no idea how hard it is for me to do this. In the first story I ever really wrote (which I beg that you do not click on since I haven't deleted it off the site yet), the characters looked at eachother for like, five minutes, and then they were all "Oh, you're the love of my life!" But whatever; I'm sure you don't care about that. Now, just what do you mean by "Poor Link?" And no, I wouldn't kill anyone off in a sad ending. ...Although I might crush someone's heart... I've got two different sad ones, one happy one, and one that leaves room for a sequel, although that sequel may or may not have anything to do with the Legend of Zelda universe.

MegamanSora - -laughs- Wow, I'm glad you like it! And you're comparing it to the Zelda Mini Madness fics? I didn't know it was _that_ crazy; this is awesome! Crazy is good. Thanks alot for voting on the ending; it really helps when you as the author (or in my case, character-torturing authoress) know what your readers want.

Kiarra-Chan - That's alright; I'm sorry for not writing in a while! My DBZ chapter fic has kind of been demanding my attention lately... -shivers- Yikes... That doesn't sound fun. Cool; I've been agreed with! ^^ -giggles- Well, you're not picky, are you? Normally that'd be good, but, indecisive Gemini that I am, I absolutely cannot decide by myself. But you don't want a sequel, so... -scribbles on a notepad- 'Arra-Chan says no...

Now, I have another question (yes, I know, I ask too many): Based on anything and everything you've read of mine, how old do you think I am? I suppose what I'm really asking is, how good a writer am I? How mature are my stories? Do I write like a child, or like someone whose actual books might be found in a library or bookstore? I've been wondering this for a while now, and I finally made up my mind to ask. I'm not just asking you guys, either; I'm going to ask readers of my other chapter fic. Your answers would still be very appreciated, though!!!

Link: Freak out often?

Me: I am not talking to you.

Gaara: Ow!

Me: -rolls eyes- What now?

Gaara: Midnite scratched me!

Malon: She thinks you're scary, too!

Gaara: -eye twitch- That is it! -chases a screaming Malon around the room, shouting incoherently-

Link: Anyone thinking what I'm thinking?

Sora: -opens the door and shoves the red-heads outside-

Me: -listens to the muffled sounds of Malon and Gaara fighting- Much better! ^^


	13. What's A Unicorn?

Me: -cringes- Don't shoot me, please...

Malon: What kept you from updating this time?

Me: Well, for starters, I got flamed, and it turned me off from writing for a couple of days. Then I told myself (after looking at the flamer's page) that whoever it was, they read all the chapters (I know, 'cause they mentioned something in the most recent), so they secretly liked it. I mean, come on, you're not gonna sit and read something you hate, so yeah. They liked it and just gave a mean review 'cause they were jealous. Or maybe I'm wrong; maybe people WILL read something they hate. I know I wouldn't. Anyway...

Malon: Anyway?

Me: Anyway, after all that, I couldn't find the inspiration to write anything in this story or my other one OR any of the random oneshots I come up with all the time! So basically, I temporarily lost my ability to write. Then, when I got it back, I typed tons of this chapter and (RETARD!!!! --bashes head against the wall-) when asked if I wanted to save changes to the document, I aimed for 'Cancel' and clicked 'No.' Talk about stupid!! Now, to top it all off, my "wonderful, maddening, infuriating, glorious mother" has practically grounded me from the computer! But I typed anyways, 'cause I love you guys. It makes my day when I find your reviews in my inbox. ^^ So thank you, everyone, and I hope you enjoy this 3804 word chapter of _The Tormentors In Person_.

Sora: -bursts into the room- MALON! DESTINYKEYBLADE! YOU'RE NOT GONNA BELIEVE THIS!

Me: Probably not...

Sora: MIDNITE CAN TALK!!!!!!

Me: .......-holds hand out- Alright, whatever you've got, hand it over.

Sora: NEVAH!!!!!! -runs away-

Me: Malon? Could you be a dear and-

Malon: With pleasure! ^^ -takes off-

Me: -waits a few minutes... and a few more... and then finally-

Malon: Got it!

Me: Great; what was it?

Malon: -hands over a red box of cereal with a toucan on the front-

Me: -facepalms- I should've known they were smoking Froot Loops...

The whole Froot Loops thing came from Girl Scouts; I'll tell you all about it later if you remind me (this means you, reviewers). Anyway, as for the disclaimer, I own nothing new... except for Ari and Scorpio. And the girl Angel is based on is _not_ that good at singing or storytelling. That's simply for the story. The quotation above is from _Coraline_ by Neil Gaiman, and the song in this chapter is from _The Last Unicorn_. ...The movie; I think there's a book... And please read the notice after the review replies; it's important.

* * *

"How did you end up all by yourself out here in the middle of nowhere?" Angel questioned.

The little girl, sitting in Angel's lap, turned her head so that she could look at the older girl. "My village got attacked. I don't know who did it; there weren't any soldiers or monsters or anything..." She frowned. "All I remember is smoke and fire... lots of screaming... I was too scared to pay much attention to what was happening," she explained.

"And?" Link asked. The child had awoken his curiosity with this strange story.

"My mother... she made me promise to run. She wanted me to find the village my grandmother lives in, but I got lost, and..." She started sniffling again. "And now I don't know where I am or how far it is to Grandmother's village or anything!"

"Shh, shh... It's alright," Angel assured her, giving her a little hug. "Link and I will help you."

"You will?" The girl looked up at Angel, her bright blue eyes shining with hope.

"Of course. Now, what's your name?"

She smiled. "Ariela.* But you can call me Ari." (*pronounced _Are - ee - ella_.)

(line break)

~Angel's POV~

"This is fun!" Ari shouted over the pounding of Shadow's hooves.

I couldn't help but smile. She was so adorable! I'd felt a strong attatchment to the child the moment I saw her in that bush, almost like I knew her already. Which was crazy, of course; I'd never seen her before in my life. Still, though, a bond had instantly formed between us, and I vowed that no matter what it took, I would help Ari find her way back to her family.

_Ariela..._ It was such a pretty name! A bit strange, perhaps, but beautiful just the same. _Does Link think so, too? _I randomly asked myself.

This thought made me glance at the Hylian. It was the first time I'd thought of him since we discovered Ari, and suddenly I wondered what he thought about this new developement. I hadn't even asked him if he wanted to take part in this new adventure. I'd have to talk to him when we stopped for the night... When I was finished practicing with my weapons, of course. With Link injured from my tug-of-war with Morpha, I was going to have to be ready to defend our little group if danger reared its head.

...What? My bond with Ari? ...WHADDAYA MEAN THAT'S IMPOSSIBLE?! It is NOT impossible for two people to share an extremely strong bond of friendship even if they've only known eachother for a little while! Although I suppose I did help it along a little bit... How? Well... It started with a story.

~Dusk~

~No One's POV~

Darkness was beginning to fall, the last light of the setting sun casting an orange glow across the land. On this beautiful soon-to-be night, little Ariela had a problem: She couldn't get to sleep. The child was very tired, having exhausted almost all of her energy earlier in the day, but no matter what she tried, she just couldn't drift off to dreamland.

"Man!" Ari exclaimed, pushing herself off the ground after her last failed attempt.

"What's the matter?" came Angel's voice. The elder girl was feeding a few apples they'd found earlier to Shadow and Epona. Link sat nearby, seeming to be deep in thought about something.

Ariela walked over to the horses and began to pet them lovingly. She'd liked the creatures immediately after meeting them. But then again, what girl doesn't love horses?

"I can't sleep, Angel," the black-haired girl complained. "I miss my mom... And I miss the stories she used to tell me to help me fall alseep when I couldn't."

Angel's face brightened. "She told you stories?"

"Yeah."

The fourteen year-old grinned. "Have no fear, the storyteller is here!" she said, striking a dramatic pose that made Ari giggle. Angel sat down, motioning for the child to do the same. "So Ari, what kind of story do you want to hear?"

Ari frowned. "Umm... What kinds do you know?"

"All kinds! About all kinds of people and animals, too!"

She thought for a moment, and happened to glance toward Shadow and Epona. "Do you know any about horses?" she asked eagerly.

Angel nodded rapidly. "Oh yeah, definitely. About horses, ponies, unicorns-"

"What's a unicorn?"

The older girl stared at her younger counterpart. "You don't know what a unicorn is?" she asked incredulously. Ari shook her head, and Angel made up her mind. "Well then, I guess I'll have to tell you about them so that the story will make sense."

She launched into her explanation, unaware that she had two people listening to her. Link, who had never heard of a unicorn either, was slightly curious as to what they might be - and what kind of story Angel had to tell about them.

"-usually white, and some of them have wings, but the ones in this story don't have wings and they're all different rainbow colors. Actually," Angel said, "that's what this story is really about."

"Rainbows?"

"Yep. In fact, it's called _The Runaway Rainbow_."

Ariela frowned. "Rainbows can't run away!"

"Well, this one did. Of course, it helps that the rainbow was actually a unicorn..."

The Hylians were completely lost. "The rainbow was a unicorn?" they asked in unison, and Angel looked at Link questioningly.

"You're listening?"

"I didn't know what a unicorn was, either!" he said defensively. "I just thought-"

But Angel cut him off, laughing. "It's alright; you can listen if you want. Just don't interrupt."

Link crossed his arms and turned his head in another direction, trying not to hear what Angel was saying, although in the end he couldn't help it.

~Fast Foward! ...Oh, and Link's POV~

"...And so, thanks to Rarity and her friends, the rainbow was saved, and all the colors returned to Ponyville."

Ari shifted her position. The child was fast alseep, and had been for a little while now. I gathered that Angel hadn't noticed from the expression of surprise on her face. She looked a little strange in the flickering light of the fire she'd stopped in the middle of her story to build so we wouldn't all freeze. (The nights were getting colder as winter approached.)

The surprised look melted into a warm, caring smile, and Angel brushed a few strands of midnight-black hair out of Ariela's face. "Good night, tiny tenshi," she whispered, and slowly crept from where the child lay.

It occurred to me as I watched that, while Angel could be quite annoying, she could also be very sweet. When she wanted to, of course. I wondered vaguely why she cared so much about the little girl we'd picked up. Don't get me wrong; Ari was adorable and easy to like, but... Oh, I don't even know what I'm talking about anymore. Forget I said anything about Ari and go back to where I left off talking about Angel.

She came back and sat by the fire, sticking her hands toward it and rubbing them together to warm them up. Then she glanced up from the flames and looked at me. And wouldn't you know she looked up right when I looked at her? I hated making eye contact with that girl; it made me feel all weird... (A/N: Ooh, weird feelings! Look out, Link; soon you'll be in so deep you don't know how to get out! ...Ahem... Yeah. Sorry.)

"...Hi?" she said uncertainly.

"Uh... hi," I replied.

Angel raised an eyebrow. "What, do I have to tell you a story, too?" she asked, pulling her hands back and plancing them on her hips.

"Huh?"

She laughed. "You're looking at me like you want something. Do you want a story?"

_....You know, I think I just might._ (You should hear her; she paints pictures in the air with her words!)

Hoping to make her laugh again (although I had no idea why), I said, "If it doesn't have unicorns and ponies in it."

My wish was granted. Angel laughed, a bell-like sound that rang through the quiet night. "Alright, let's see," she said, and began ticking things off on her fingers. "I've already explained Eragon, you don't want any pony stories, I'd be scared if you did, you probably don't want to hear about the Avatar, and.... Hmm. ....Ha! Got it!" she exclaimed.

She grinned triumphantly. However, the moment she began to speak, her expression changed, and her voice took on a deeper, more mystical tone, which Ari and I soon began to refer to as her storytelling voice.

"Link, the story I am about to tell you is divided into four parts. The first part is sort of a prequel, and is not really neccessary. Honestly, it is more of an explanation of things in the trilogy, but since I would have to explain these things anyway, would you like to hear it?"

I nodded.

"The let us begin!" Angel cleared her throat and started to speak. "In a h-"

"Wait, what's it called?" I interrupted, noting that she hadn't told me.

A sly smile crept onto her face. "It has more than one name. However, you may call it _There and Back Again_. Now then, as I was saying, in a hole in the ground, there lived..."

~Ari's POV~

"How come Link gets the cool story?" I grumbled under my breath. I liked the unicorn one, but Angel started telling the good one after she thought I was asleep! I didn't hear what it was called, but I heard everything else about the story. And boy, what a story it was! I was sad when Link yawned and Angel said they should go to bed.

_I wanted to hear more!_ I pouted. Nobody heard me, though, 'cause I said it in my head.

Anyway, every night, I pretended like I was alseep so that Angel would start the other story up again. Then I'd just lay there and listen, trying not to say anything so that they wouldn't know I was awake. But enough about what happened at night; what happened during the day was way more exciting! Especially those two days when...

~No One's POV~

"Hey, I think I know where I am!" Ariela exclaimed one day as the threesome rode through a large canyon-like area. In front of them was a pass that, while a bit dark and shadowy, appeared safe enough from a distance.

Angel pulled back on Shadow's reins. "Whoah!" The stallion came to a halt, whinnying loudly in protest. He hated standing still.

"What's going on?" Link asked from somewhere behind them.

"Ari thinks she recognizes this place!" Angel called back to him. In moments, the red Hylian mare and her rider were beside the black stallion and his passengers.

"..."

The fourteen year-old raised an eyebrow as she gazed at her blonde friend. "Nothing to say?" she asked in a teasing tone.

"....Angel, get your bow."

Both Ari and Angel looked at Link in alarm.

"Link, why does she need-" the child started to ask, but cut off when Link snatched her out of Shadow's saddle (A/N: That could be a tounge-twister if it tried hard enough...) and dropped her on the ground beside the horse.

Angel leapt off her mount and scrambled for her bow. "Why do I need this, Link?" she asked loudly, a note of panic in her voice.

He didn't answer. What he did was jump to the ground and grab hold of Shadow's reins with his right hand; Epona's reins were in his left.

Ari, who had been told about the encounter with Morpha, noticed this. "I thought your arm got hurt!" she exclaimed.

"Shh!" was the only reply Link had to offer. He knew good and well that this was quite a stupid thing to do, but he didn't want the horses to bolt. While it was true that they could be called back with the Ocarina, it was better to have them there in case fighting was a stupid course of action, too. Having never visited this part of Hyrule before, Link wasn't sure what kind of monster was coming toward them, but whatever it was sounded big and unfriendly.

"Get an arrow ready," he commanded quietly. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Angel fit an arrow to the string.

"Where do I aim?" she asked in a strangled voice.

Link listened for a moment, trying to determine where the small rocks clattering to the canyon floor were falling from. "There," he said. He dropped Shadow's reins to point at the place the monster would likely emerge. Angel turned her arrow in the right direction, and Link took the reins again.

"It's getting closer..." Ari whispered fearfully. And indeed it was.

Shadow's nostrils flared as he sniffed the air. Talented horse that he was, he could tell the scent of good things from the stench of bad ones, and whatever was coming was most definitely _bad_. Epona began to prance about nervously. Her eyes darted from place to place as she looked for a place to run.

"Ari, I want you to run," Link said to the frightened child in front of him.

She looked up at him with wide eyes. "Where?"

"Back that way," he answered, glancing behind him. "This thing's big, and if I had to guess, I'd say it probably eats little girls."

Shrieking, Ari sprinted away. And that was all it took.

The monster, a gargantuan scorpion-like creature, dropped down from the canyon wall. Epona reared up, pawing the air wildly, and attempted to run when she touched the ground. Link pulled back on the reins with all his might, relieved that Shadow was standing still. He focused his attention on the red mare and released the stallion, only to find (once he'd managed to calm Epona) that Shadow had taken off.

Meanwhile, Angel stared into the scorpion's one huge eye (A/N: Try to imagine a cross between Gohma from Ocarina of Time and the first boss on the Windwaker; it's got the one eye from both of them, pinchers like the WW thing, and it's a scorpion, like... uh... itself? ^^), knowing that she had to shoot at least five arrows into it. The problem was, she only had nine, ten if you count the one she was about to use, and with her twenty-eighty vision, she wasn't exactly the best at aiming...

_Look at it this way,_ she said to herself. _You got five misses. Just like bowling on the Wii Sports fitness test. Yeah... five misses... _

Steeling herself and taking a deep breath, Angel let loose the arrow she held. The creature swatted it away with its stinger.

"Okay... That didn't work... EEP!" she squealed as the scorpion came up close to her. It was almost within stinging range now; Angel had to come up with a plan, and fast. Snatching another arrow, she shot it right in the pupil of the scorpion's eye. With the distance the arrow had to fly shortened, the beast didn't have time to stop it.

Now the monster ("I think I'll call him Scorpio..." Angel muttered to herself as she drew another arrow from her quiver.) thrashed around, blinded. In agony and angry about it, Scorpio began jabbing his tail into the ground, swinging it around in between stabs. It was undoubtedly in this way that the Fairy Bow was knocked from Angel's hand.

"Not good!" she yelled when her weapon fell to the ground. As in her encounter with the Tektites and things at Lake Hylia, Scorpio turned in her direction. "Stupid," Angel said, rolling her eyes at her inability to keep her mouth shut in battle.

As the great beast came toward her, stabbing at the ground in front of him, Angel did the only thing she could think of: She pulled the Master Sword out of its sheath and started hacking at Scorpio. First a leg came off... then about half of his tail... then another leg... and so on and so forth.

Finally, Scorpio was missing so many limbs and bleeding so much that he collapsed. Shadow, who had run toward Angel with the intention of rescuing her, saw that his help was no longer needed and contented himself with trampling the fallen monster. Scorpio's sightless eye slid closed, and Angel, panting and covered in purple scorpion blood (that's right, purple), let the Master Sword fall to the ground, for she knew she had won. Yes, she'd won, but that didn't save her from a severe scolding later...

~That Night As They Sat Around The Fire~

Angel sat with her legs crossed, her elbows propped up on them, and her face resting in hands. She stared into the dancing flames as Link chastised her for the way she'd defeated Scorpio, only catching pieces of what he said.

"...can't just freeze up; you have to stay focused and concentrate on your enem... and you have to aim; it's a wonder you managed to hit that thi... just like when you faced Morpha: you starting stabbing like craz- ARE YOU LISTENING?!" Link thundered, seeing the glazed look in Angel's eyes.

She snapped to attention immediately. "Yeah, I'm listening."

The blonde crossed his arms. "I don't believe you. What did I just say?"

"You asked what you just said," Angel replied coolly.

"Before that."

"You said you don't believe me."

"Before that!"

"You asked if I was listening."

Link growled in frustration, and Ari, who had thus far been silent, couldn't help but giggle.

"You think that's funny?" he snapped.

Ari giggled again. "Extremely," she answered, a smirk on her face.

Link shot Angel a glare. "Why'd you have to go and make her act like you?"

The fourteen year-old cackled maniacally in a way highly reminiscent of Lily. "You ready for your story?" she asked Ari, turning her back on Link.

"Yeah!" Ari said eagerly.

"Alright! That's good, 'cause I've got a really exciting one for you tonight!" Angel cleared her throat and let her voice take on its mystical tone. "On a dark night, out in the desert, a man waited out in the middle of the shifting sands for his accomplice, a thief by the name of..."

Link rolled his eyes and sat down. _Like one Angel wasn't enough!_ he thought, but deep inside, he knew he didn't really mind.

(line break)

Ari shivered. A cold winter wind was blowing through the trees of the dark forest they rode through, and being cold was something the child wasn't fond of. Now, while Ari liked the woods in general, she did _not_ like this particular forest. It had an eerie feel to it, as though something sinister were waiting around the corner, ready to grab her at any given moment. The little girl put her hands in Shadow's mane, letting her fingers get tangled up in it.

"I don't like this place," she told Angel, whom she rode in front of. "It's creepy!"

"It's okay, we'll be out of here soon," the older girl reassured the younger. After a moment, she asked, "Do you want me to sing you a song to help pass the time?"

Ari nodded fervently. "Yes, please!" she squeaked, jumping at the sound of a stick breaking under Shadow's hooves.

Angel opened her mouth to begin, but Ari cut her off. "Wait, what's the song about?"

"Just listen," Angel replied. "And imagine that this forest is the one in the song, okay?" With that, she again prepared to sing.

_"When the last eagle flies  
__Over the last crumbling mountain  
__And the last lion roars  
__At the last dusty fountain  
__In the shadow of the forest  
__Though she may be old and worn  
__They will stare, unbelieving  
__At the last unicorn..."_

"What does she look like?" Ari asked in a whisper.

"She's as white as snow, and every bit as big as Epona. She's not like the colored unicorns. Her horn sparkles with the magic she uses. And when she gallops through the woods, the plants all get greener; the flowers' colors brighten; even the trees react to her prescence."

The wind blew again, hard and cold, and Ari pulled her fingers out the horse's mane so she could wrap her arms around herself. She glanced at the flowers on the ground. They were covered in frost, as the sunlight didn't reach through the trees to warm them up.

_"When the first breath of winter  
__Through the flowers is icing  
__And you look to the north  
__And the pale moon is rising  
__And it seems like all is dying  
__And would leave the world to mourn  
__In the distance, hear the laughter  
__Of the last unicorn  
__"I'm alive! I'm alive!" "_

Angel's voice rang out clear and strong through the silence of the forest, bouncing off all the trees to travel deeper into the woods. Link, who had only heard the Earth girl sing once before, and then only for a brief moment, was amazed by what she could do with her voice. It was truly a gift, he thought.

After a few moments more of riding along, the travelers came to a clearing. Ari took a flying leap off Shadow's back, laughing, and flopped down on the ground where she landed. Although the forest continued, she was happy to be granted a reprieve from the feeling that something was going to get her - and she was happy to see the sun and clouds above her again.

Angel and Link dismounted as well and walked over to where Ari lay in the soft grass.

"Hey, was the song finished?" she asked suddenly, sitting up and giving Angel a questioning look.

Angel shook her head. Clearing her throat, she continued.

_"When the last moon is cast  
__Over the last star of morning  
__And the future has passed  
__Without even a last, desperate warning  
__Then look into the sky where through  
__The clouds a path is torn  
__Look and see her, how she sparkles  
__It's the last unicorn!"_

She made to sing the last two "I'm alive"s, but another voice sang them first - a female voice, and it wasn't Ari's. The sound of thundering hooves approached, though neither Shadow nor Epona were even moving. From out of the trees, a majestic white horse appeared, a sparkling horn in the center of its forehead. Slowing from a gallop to a trot, from a trot to a prance, and finally to a walk, the creature approached little Ariela, who ran to it, smiling.

Link and Angel looked on in disbelief as the unicorn nuzzled a laughing Ari. They glanced at eachother briefly, then turned away to gaze at the trees and attempt to convince themselves that they were seeing things.

* * *

MegamanSora - Well, not everone can... but I suppose you're entitled to lol. Really? A yes? Cool! ^^ ...I still haven't decided what the sequel will be yet, but I'll try my best to write one after I do. Yeah, you really do need to; I wanna read it! Yes, I know who Megaman is: ANNOYING!! But that's just my opinion. Wow, is it that obvious? You hit the nail right on the head; I'll turn 15 in a while. Not sayin' when, but in a while! Anyhow, thanks for reviewing! I hope you continue to do so; if you read that big paragraph at the top, you know how happy I am when my readers are satisfied.

Kiarra-Chan - -jumps up and down gleefully- YOU ARE THE MOST AWESOME REVIEWER EVAH!!!! Seriously, you have no idea how awesome it is to hear that I'm a good writer. (Especially after that stupid flame...) Thank you so much, 'Arra-chan!

Shepherd's Purse - Aww, thank you! You make my day, you know that? Your reviews are always so lovely and long, and you don't have negative things to say; only helpful. So I thank you! Now, to answer those questions and respond to those statements... -clears throat- Four? Wow, at least I haven't done that... But I don't think you should have thrown the notebook away. Mistakes are things to learn from... At least, that's what I think. Yeah, Angel is pretty random, isn't she? The way she feels remains to be seen... even by me! That's right: I don't know yet! -looks around nervously- Did I say that? Ummm.... That might change... But I'm trying to look for other options, so they might die and they might not! (I'm so terrible!) Hmm... would that be a big spoiler...? Huh... Not too bad, so the answer is: It might be a different game series. See, that's not too bad, is it? lol Yes, Angel definitely needs a hand. And she'll get one. After reading this chapter and the way Link was getting onto her for her sloppy performance, I'd say you probably figured out that he'll start coaching her. Hmm... I don't know how he would have felt... I know I would've been screaming, though! And of course, by now, you know why the little girl in the bush was in the bush, so... -reads through the review on more time- Looks like I've answered everything!

And now for that notice I mentioned: I now have 5 different endings planned for TTIP, and since I can't choose between them, I'm just going to post all of them when the end rolls around. Ending #1, the original and the one that leaves room for a sequel, will be titled _The End... Or Is It?_ Ending #2, the happy one, is _Not Perfect, But Good Enough_ ; #3, the sad ending, is _Where I Stood,_ and is sort of a song fic to the _Where I Stood_ by Missy Higgins. #4, the I'm-not-exactly-sure-what-this-is-but-I-think-it-could-be-seen-as-depressing ending, will be titled _The Way They Look_. And finally, the title of #5, (my favorite, along with #1) has not yet been decided. I'll list all possible titles here, and once we get to the end and I post all the endings, I would very much like it if you loverly readers would read all of them and tell me which one you thought was best, along with which title you think is better for #5. _Better Off, Reflections, To Be A Hero, Four Years To The Day, Shattered_, and_ Poor Hobbits_ are the titles. Hopefully, I'll update often enough to get to these mysterious endings in just a little while. For now, though, I hope I've satisfied you with the latest addition _to The Tormentors In _Person. ...Thank you, good night! XD


	14. A Place To Stay

Two things that I'm really, sincerely sorry for: the lateness and janky-ness of this chapter. (The word janky does not belong to me. It belongs to the people who write the iCarly episodes and scripts. Just thought I'd clear that up.) Honestly, the only reason I'm gonna go ahead and post this is because the next chapter is gonna be super long, and I've already made you wait long enough for another chapter. I do have a reason for not updating, though. My muse ran away and refused to come back for a few weeks. Then, when it finally decided to come back to me, I was on in Florida for my Spring Break vacation, and I don't have a laptop, so I had no way to type my ideas. And when I got home, I had to jump back into my crazy busy life, and I really didn't have many opportunities. But when I did get the chance, I typed like a mad-woman. Thus, this 4,427 word chapter was finally finished. I've already got the next chapter started, and I seem to have a little more time now, so it won't take too awful long to get that one up. In fact, I hope to have it posted within two weeks. And if I don't, PLEASE feel free to send me an angry PM demanding to know why I haven't updated yet. That'll make me finish faster if I'm not done yet. Thank you to Kiarra-Chan, my faithful reviewer, and this time, my only one. I hope I didn't offend anybody last time I replied... And as always, replies (or in this case, the reply) will be at the end of the chapter. Please enjoy, if that's possible.

* * *

~Angel's POV~

The weeks wore on, although most of the time they felt like a single, endless day. I'm ashamed to say that over the course of this day, I came to a point where rescuing Lily was no longer of such great importance to me. I mean, yeah, she was still my friend and I still wanted to save her, but other things were beginning to take priority over her. For example, food, shelter, and safety.

I knew Link didn't want to kill any little creatures - and neither did I, for that matter - but winter was upon us. The apples, berries, and other fruits and vegetables we'd been living on were soon going to dissapear. I began practicing more with the Fairy Bow, as I had a sneaking suspicion that I'd be using it more than anything else. Not to mention my sloppy defeat of Scorpio had left Link convinced that I was completely clueless as to how the weapons were supposed to be used. Nonetheless, I was quite, uh... surprised, I suppose you could say, when he interrupted my practicing to show me the correct way of going about things.

~About Two Weeks Ago, No One's POV~

The bow string twanged loudly as Angel released the arrow, aiming for a... a... what in the world was that, anyway? ("It was a target, destinykeyblade!" Angel exclaimed, hurt because the authoress couldn't tell.) She missed her mark by about three feet, and hung her head in shame. ("You are so mean to your characters!")

"This is pathetic..." she mumbled. "Why couldn't I hit that?"

"Because you're not doing it right," came Link's voice from behind her.

Angel spun around and stared at him, startled. "Wha-"

"Show me." Link interrupted.

Slightly confused, Angel pulled another arrow out of her quiver, set it to the string, and pulled it back. Link walked in a circle around her, examining everything from her stance to the way she held the arrow.

"Well, you don't have much wrong," the Hylian announced. "You keep your wrist straight, your stance is almost perfect for someone of your build, and you seem to have a firm grip on the string and the arrow. A little too firm, I think."

Angel lowered the bow. "What do you mean?" she asked, puzzled.

Link walked right up to Angel and randomly (or so she thought) poked her arm.

"Ow! Quit it! I have a bruise there!" the fourteen year-old squeaked.

"Exactly. The string and the arrow are moving to the side when you let go, and they keep hitting your arm. _That's_ why you can't hit your target."

Angel's eyes sparkled with a new understanding. Once Link had moved out of her way, she fit her arrow to the string again and raised the bow, her gaze fixed on the wooden target. After a long moment, Angel released the arrow, and waited with bated breath as it flew through the air.

_Thunk!_

The Earth girl didn't see it, but Link smiled proudly. "Dead center... Good job," he said quietly.

~End Flashback~

~Angel's POV Again~

After that, our food problem was solved. I shot things with my arrows, and once I was sure they were dead, Link was given the lovely task of skinning the animal and cooking it over the fire. Ari and I dissapeared without fail every time, as I didn't want her to see and, quite honestly, had no desire to see myself. I'd walked in on my dad once, back on Earth, when he was chopping a deer up. It was awful! I shudder just thinking about it...

Anyhow, after that came the problem of keeping us safe. With colder weather came hungrier animals and monsters, and I needed to be able to defend my companions and myself from any that might be a danger to us. This issue was quickly eliminated, as Link, deciding that I had potential, took it upon himself to teach me what he knew.

Every evening when we stopped traveling for the day, he would tell me which weapon I was to train with that night. Then he'd tell me how to use it, show me what I was doing wrong if I messed up, and teach me different techniques for that particular weapon. I never really had any trouble with anything... except the Master Sword. And most of my problems with that came from Ari sneaking up on me. Like this one, for example...

~Another Flashback, Same POV As The Last~

"Wrong!" Link shouted, a touch of irritation in his voice. "If you'd done that in a real battle, you'd have been killed. Don't fight your surroundings; use them to your advantage! Now, try again!" He lunged at her again, holding nothing back. If she was ever to be worth anything as a warrior, she'd have to do better.

Angel growled as she dodged his attack, wondering how she was supposed to use the slope they were on. It looked pretty hopeless, as Link stood higher than she, and could easily pull off some crazy move and - if he wasn't careful - end up murdering her.

After about fifteen more minutes of failed attempts and lots of yelling back and forth, Link walked away, telling Angel to practice the techniques he'd shown her and leave the slope for the next morning.

Growling again, Angel made her way back to level ground and did as she'd been instructed, quickly ceasing to pay attention to the world around her. Therefore, it was no surprise when Ari surprised her.

"Hey Angel!" the child said loudly as she came up behind the elder girl.

"WAAH!!!"

Angel screamed and threw her hands up in the air, unintentionally letting go of the Master Sword as she did so. The blade spun around in the air so that the hilt pointed toward the sky. As it plummeted back to the ground, Angel reached up to catch it, finding too late that the 'pointy end' as she was known to call it, was what she'd be grabbing onto.

The edge of the cold steel sliced her palm as it made its descent, fortunately avoiding her finger and major nerves and veins. For a moment or two, no blood was visible; the nerves were in shock, and for those few moments, pain was non-existent. (A/N: That can happen. I know from experience.)

Ari squealed in fright upon seeing the wound, and immediately began screeching for Link (and that it wasn't her fault, or at least that she didn't mean for that to happen.)

Angel rolled her eyes, knowing that it wasn't quite as serious as it looked. Calmly, she picked up the Master Sword with her left hand, as her right had been the victim, and cut off a strip of the white fabric covering her arm. Then she attempted to tie it around the wound. Unfortunately, it didn't work, as she was quite clumsy when it came to things such as these.

When Link arrived at the scene, he tried to ask Ari what she was yelling about, but was interrupted by Angel barking an order at him.

"Link, come tie this for me."

She held out her hand, the fabric lying on top of it.

"What happened?" he asked as he approached her.

"Just tie that!" the girl snapped. "And don't move it; I've got it in exactly the right spot."

Resisting the urge to look despite what she said, Link wound the makeshift tourniquet tightly around Angel's hand.

"Thank you!" Angel said when he finished, smiling brightly. She made to lower her hand, but Link caught it. A scarlet color was beginning to seep through the ivory threads that covered the gash; the vibrance of it had made Link look.

Angel looked up at the sky pleadingly as the Hylian began a speech about how she should be more careful and blah blah blah blah blah. "Just strike me with lightning already and get it over with!" she begged. "Don't make me suffer through this!"

Of course, no lightning appeared.

~Again, Same As The Last~

With food and protection taken care of, the only thing left to worry about was how to keep warm and dry. And that brings us to the present, as I haven't managed to to find the solution to that problem yet...

~No One's POV~

Rain poured down on the three weary travelers and their mounts.

"Link!" Angel shouted over the roar of the howling wind. "We have to find some kind of shelter, or we're all gonna die!"

"I know, I know!" the seventeen year-old shouted back. Then, quietly, he repeated, "I know."

Ari shivered. The poor child was soaked to the bone, and the cold winter rain showed no signs of stopping. All she could do was hope that her two elder companions could find them a place to stay, and soon.

"Whoah!" Link cried as Epona slipped on a wet rock. The horse hardly managed to right herself, but once she had, she refused to go any further.

Sighing, Link slid out of the saddle and began to walk, picking out the safest route through the maze of stones that sat in their way, some of them nearly invisible in the mud that covered the floor of the forest they traveled through. Angel jumped off Shadow's back and led him past the rocks as well, feeling that it would be better for everyone if they avoided another almost-fall.

Time passed. How much, Angel wasn't sure. She was sure, however, that she was about ready to collapse from exhaustion. They'd been traveling since early that morning, and it was now getting late. By chance or fate, the tired girl just happened to look up from the muddy ground and see something in the woods ahead of her. She squinted, trying to make out what it was.

"Link!" she called. "Link, come here!"

Groaning, the Hylian turned around. You see, he'd gotten a little ways ahead of Angel, and although it didn't exactly make him happy, he trudged back to Angel's position. "What is it?" he asked when he stood beside her.

"Look at that," she said, pointing. "Do I see what I think I see?"

Link looked out in the direction Angel was gesturing. A large, dark shape loomed in the distance - a large, dark shape that he was very happy to see. A smile broke over his face. Without warning, Link dropped Epona's reins and embraced Angel. "You have just saved our lives," he informed her before mounting his steed. "Get back on Shadow; I don't wanna stay out in the rain any longer than I have to."

Angel obeyed him quickly. "Ari, sweetie," she said to the shivering child, "we just found a place to spend the night."

Ari gave a weak cheer. "Yay..."

The horses, at their riders' command, began racing through the darkened forest, neighing happily once they got a look at what they were headed for. Shadow, in fact, put on a burst of speed in order to get there faster. Angel and Ari screamed, but the stallion didn't slow until he'd reached the four stall stable that had been erected next to the house.

(line break)

"Hello? Is anybody here?" Angel called tentatively as she roamed through the dwelling.

Link placed his hand on her shoulder so that she'd look at him and shook his head. "No one's been here for weeks."

"How do you know?" Ari asked, looking up at him.

"Yeah, Link, how do you know?" demanded Angel, placing her hands on her hips. Link sighed and ran his finger along a tabletop, then held it out toward the girls.

"Eww, that looks gross!" Ari exclaimed, backing away. "What's all over yo-"

"It's dust. Lots and lots of dust." The Hylian turned to his Earthling counterpart. "That's how I know."

She began to blush. "Oh."

Shaking his head, Link wandered around until he found a fireplace and a pile of wood. "Hey, Angel!" he called. (She and Ari had stayed in the other room, next to the door. They wanted to be able to get out quickly, in case there was something unpleasant lurking inside the house.)

"What?" she called back.

"Come here!"

"Why?"

Link growled. "Because I'm older than you and I said to!" He didn't like to play the age card, and usually didn't, but after the day they'd had, Link was feeling tired and short-tempered.

"...I don't like you!"

"I don't like you either! Now get in here!"

Angel 'hmph'ed and put her nose up in the air, crossing her arms as well. However, she did as she'd been told, albeit grudgingly. Ari scampered along behind her, not wanting to be left alone.

"What do you want?" Angel asked sullenly upon entering.

"Help me make a fire."

The girl scoffed. "Are you crazy? Me and fire don't mix. And even if we did, I don't know how to light one. You're on your own." So saying, she began sauntering back out of the room, Ari again following her. Of course, this wasn't the whole truth. She had started fires before, but never in a fireplace, and she thought that the procedure might be different. Besides, she wasn't in the mood.

".....I didn't mean it," Link said, right around the time Angel reached the doorway.

The Earthling stopped, but she didn't turn and look at her frienemy (sort of a friend and sort of an enemy). "Didn't mean what?" she asked, trying her best to sound apathetic.

"What I said."

"And what did you say?"

".....I said I didn't like you. That's not true, and I shouldn't have said it."

The brown/blonde-haired teen stood there for a moment or two, wondering what she should do. Should she help him or not? After all, she really didn't know how to start a fire, and if she did manage to get one going... well, she was a bit of a pyromaniac, and was bad to burn things that probably didn't need burned...

"Angel?" Link asked, making her lose her train of thought.

She turned around and walked back to where Link knelt on the floor, a cold, hard expression on her face. Then, she smiled and knelt down beside him. "So, what do I do?" she asked, grinning. (A/N: Notice she never apologizes... If you recall, she was the one who said 'I don't like you' first. -shrugs- Oh well. Link likes her too much to hold it against her, anyway.)

(line break)

A fire crackled in the dusty fireplace, its bright orange flames illuminating the otherwise midnight-dark room. Angel sat staring into it, pouting. The little fire looked so hungry, and Link wouldn't let her slice that chair up and feed it to the poor thing... She sighed and turned away, knowing that if she continued to gaze at it, the fire would force her to do its bidding.

Ari was cuddled up in a blanket that Link had found somewhere within the dark depths of the house, which Angel, by the way, refused to explore until daybreak. She had no real problem with the darkness itself, but the things that hid in it were another story. And speaking of stories...

"Angel?" Ari asked, her voice cutting through the silence that had settled in.

"Hai?"

"....."

The older girl laughed. "Sorry. I know a few words of another language; coudn't help myself. Whatcha need, kiddo?"

Ari looked at her curiously, but shrugged it off and requested that Angel tell her a story. "The one you tell Link," she added. "I'm getting tired of ponies."

Angel wasn't sure what to say. She had never intended for Ari to hear Eragon; it was a bit dark for someone her age...

"Pretty please?" Ari begged.

Sighing, Angel gave in. "Alright. But I won't say a word until Link gets in here. I'm sure he wouldn't appreciate us starting without him."

A scowl appeared on the child's face. "LINK!!!!" she cried shrilly. The Hylian, who had been wandering through the darkness Angel refused to venture into, was in the room in an instant.

"What? What is it? What's wrong?!"

"It's storytime and Angel won't start without you!" Ari said, and pointed to the flor. "Sit!" she commanded.

Link stared at the child, who quickly withdrew her finger.

"Umm..." she said uncertainly, wondering how to make up for her mistake. However, when Link began to laugh, she decided she hadn't done any harm and looked to Angel. "Story!"

Also laughing, the older girl started into the tale, feeling a bit like a Jigglypuff from Pokemon when she looked up about fifteen minutes later to find that her audience had fallen asleep.

"What I wouldn't give for a permanent marker..." she muttered before drifting off herself.

~The Next And Rather Interesting Day~

"Angel, Link, come're!" Ari shouted from outside.

Angel groaned. "What do you think she wants now?" she asked the blonde Hylian sitting next to her.

"I don't know," he answered miserably. "But if I've learned anything this morning, it's that you get over there as fast as possible when she calls you. Unless if course you want her to poke and screech at you 'til you do what she wants, that is."

It hadn't been a very good morning so far. Ari, feeling braver now that the dark of night had been banished by the light of day, had taken it upon herself to explore their temporary home. (You see, deciding that if Lily had survived this long, she would continue to and that continuing their quest with winter weather approaching wasn't such a good idea, the travelers chose to stay in the abandoned dwelling until spring.) Several times during her exploration, she had called for her two companions, who weren't very eager to go tromping through the house to find her, and therefore didn't. Well, the first time, anyway. Then they found out what a menace Ari could be if she didn't get her way. Since then, the two had hastened to the child's side, just as they were doing at this very moment.

"What is it, Ari?" Angel asked trying not to sound as annoyed as she was.

"Check this out!" the black-haired girl exclaimed, and, taking the older girl's hand, drug her over to a large set of doors in the ground.

_Weird..._ Angel thought upon seeing them. _It looks like a storm cellar or something..._

"What are these here for?" Ari asked, curiosity shining in her big blue eyes.

"I don't have a clue," Angel replied, shrugging.

Link stepped up silently behind the Earthling and spoke, making her jump. "Then don't you think you should get one?" The seventeen year-old was slapped, both for his comment and for scaring his comrade. However, she agreed... until she opened the doors.

Cold air surged out of the underground room, as well as a musty smell that reminded Angel of her grandparents' basement. It wasn't these things that made her change her mind, though. It was the pitch blackness of the room that made her want to scream. Even with the sun shining in, only the first couple of steps were illuminated, something that very much disturbed the russet-locked girl.

Angel took a step backward just as Link stepped foward, causing her to bump into him and lose her balance. A flush rose to her cheeks when she felt Link's arms around her, keeping her from falling. Fortunately, her long hair hid the pinkness from the Hylian's eyes. Wriggling out of his grasp, Angel backed up again, regarding the opening in the ground with distrust.

Raising an eyebrow, Link turned to her. "What's the matter with you? Surely you're not scared of the dark?"

"No," she snapped viciously.

Link flinched, but quickly recovered. "Then why aren't you going in to check it out?" he challenged.

~Link's POV~

_Note to self: Stay on her good side,_ I thought to myself as Angel snarled at me. All I did was ask a question; she didn't have go feral like that.

Even after that thought, I couldn't but ask her why she was still standing there. A few seconds passed. Then, I watched in confusion as she ran into the house, emerging a moment later with a Deku Stick torch. Despite what you may have been led to believe, Deku Sticks are made of good, strong wood, and they last for quite a while when set afire.

Slowly, Angel walked in front me, approaching the entrance of the... well, whatever the room was. She stood there for about thirty seconds or so, then turned to face me. Her face had grown pale, and I could see fear in her eyes.

"Link?" she asked quietly. "Does the Sun's Song really freeze Re-Dead?"

I nodded, wondering why she'd want to know something like that. Then I remembered the day I'd first met her. She - and therefore I - had been stuck in the Shadow Temple because of her fear of the vile creatures. She had been so afraid, in fact, that she'd been forced to ask one of her friends for help getting past them. That friend, of course, was Lily, the lunatic we were on this quest to rescue.

_No wonder she's so hesitant,_ I thought. _Re-Dead love to hide in dark places like this._

A flicker of relief passed across her face, but quickly vanished.

"But..." she murmured, "how am I supposed to hold the torch, the Ocarina, and the Master Sword? I've only got two hands..."

Resisting the impulse to make her go it alone, I pried the Deku Stick from the vice-like grip she had on it. She looked up at me, confused. I couldn't help but smile as I said "I'm coming with you." Had I not been holding the torch, I think she'd have tackled me like she did after the episode in the Shadow Temple.

Much more confident now that she knew she wouldn't be by herself, Angel drew the Master Sword from its sheath, a determined look on her face. As soon as she glanced at the hole, this look dissapeared, and she shrank back next to me, entwining her left arm with my right.

"...Did you lie when you said you weren't afraid of the dark?" I questioned.

She shook her head. "No. I love the dark; I'm not afraid of it. ...Just the stuff that hides in it."

I couldn't think of a response to that, so rather than try to make something up, I just nodded in understanding and led Angel into the room.

~No One's POV~

Angel's eyes darted around nervously. In the flickering torch light, every shadow looked like a monster waiting to grab her; every footfall that echoed of the stone walls was the sound of something sneaking up behind her. She tightened her grip on the Master Sword's hilt and moved closer to Link, telling herself over and over again that she wasn't in danger.

_It's alright,_ she cajoled mentally. _It's alright. Link won't let anything get you._

A strange emotion that she couldn't identify welled up inside her as the last thought entered her mind. It was true, Link wouldn't let anything happen to her. Or rather, he couldn't. He may have wanted her gone; she wasn't sure. But she _was_ sure that, no matter what came after her, Link would jump in front to save her life.

_One of the side-effects of being a hero, I suppose,_ she thought, glancing at him. _It must have been hard. It must still be. He was so young when he had to start going around and saving people. He wasn't ready to bear that kind of burden. But then, who would've been? What could prepare you for something like that? And if you show up too late...._

Angel shivered, attempting to push the gruesome mental images away. Link, who noticed this shudder, stopped for a moment and gave her a reassuring smile.

"Hey, calm down, alright?" he said, his blue eyes shining in the firelight. "Nothing's gonna hurt you, I promise." The Hylian grinned. "And if some monster came along and tried to... Well, I wouldn't want to be in it's position."

She giggled, not bothering to say what had really caused her spasm. Suddenly, she felt much more at ease. It was as though the shadows that darkened the corners of her mind had been chased away, much like dawn banished the blackness of the night. Angel loosened her grip on Link's arm (only a little, though) and looked ahead of her. She then regarded Link questioningly. His grin broadened, and the two resumed walking.

"What do you think this room is for?" Angel asked in a quiet voice. She felt Link shrug.

"I'm really not sure. But if I had to guess, I'd say we'll know by the time we get to the end of it."

A mouse scurried across the stone floor ahead of them, and Angel couldn't keep from jumping. Her companion laughed loudly, and the sound echoed, bouncing off the walls. She glared at him. "What's so funny?"

"It just amuses me that you can stand up to monsters that would terrify any normal person with no trouble, and yet you jump when you see a mouse."

Angel rolled her eyes and elbowed his ribs, but he just laughed again.

A few moments passed, and the two of them came to the end of their little trek. Another stone wall was in front of them. Angel put the Master Sword back in its sheath, then looked at the wall with her hands on her hips.

"What's the point of this room?" she demanded of the rocks. They didn't answer. Link, however, did.

"Look at this," he said, and Angel turned.

"What? ...Oh..."

All along the sides of the walls were long, tall shelves on which many jars sat. Link held the torch up to them, curious as to what they contained.

"It's a storeroom!" he exclaimed. "These shelves are stocked with food."

Angel did a sort of jig. "Yay! We're not gonna starve during the winter!"

A strange noise that she knew she hadn't made reached her ears, and she squeaked in fright. Grabbing Link's hand, she began to run back to the entrance. Once there, she practically threw the Hylian to the ground and slammed the storeroom doors shut. Angel then collapsed on top of them, panting.

Link shook his head as he watched Angel's theatrics. _What am I gonna do with her?_

_

* * *

_

Kiarra-Chan - Thanks; your nice words are a big pick-me-up. I hope I didn't dissapoint you with this chapter the way I dissapointed myself... Really? I take you like her then? Yes. Yes you are. And as soon as I get on a computer that has high-speed internet instead of my snail-speed dial-up, I'll be sure to check 'em out. Cloudy Cult... the name has me interested...


	15. Caramelldansen

So much for two weeks... Blame my summer job. And my family. And my obssessive Wind Waker playing. And Caramelldansen. And the Hare Hare Yukai dance. But most of all, blame me, 'cause I'm just making up excuses here. Sorry, y'all. But hey, at least it's not a really short chapter you had to wait forever for. Without all my babbling here, it's 6,393 words.

Anyway, now for the real babbling. In an attempt to get more people reviewing, I'm gonna have a contesty-thingy! The rules are simple, and you pick what you wanna do. Here are your options! 1) There are multiple songs in this story. I want you to tell me what they're from and/or who performs them. 2) There are four OCs in this chapter who will appear again in the next. Their names, which came from other things, have been scrambled. Unscramble 'em for me. It's not hard if you're paying any attention to this A/N. Or, there's always 3) The story at the very beginning of this chapter and the one near the very end. What are they? And, just because I feel like seeing if anyone else knows, what video game is Lynna Village from?

And what, you ask, is your prize for answering these questions? You get... Drumroll please!... A CAMEO! That's right, my dear readers. I need another OC, but I'm fresh out of ideas. So I wanna snag your ideas! And don't worry, I need multiple people, so if you feel up to it, answer those questions and send me the description on your people! (Appearance, personality, etc.) And I may end up using your character in another fic, 'cause I have a couple of oneshot ideas... And yes, they're Zelda fics. Speaking of Zelda oneshots, I wrote one a little while back that I hoped you readers would find and read. Apparently you didn't... Anywho, it's called _Veteran of the Psychic Wars_, and it's rather dark... Please feel free to check it out; I've gotten a couple of positive reviews for it, and I'd love to have more! *hint hint nudge nudge*

Alright, I'm done talking now. Please enjoy the chapter that you've waited so long for. ^^ Oh! I almost forgot! Thank you as always to Kiarra-Chan! Thanks also go out to the delightfully demented akatsukikat1, who so enjoys all my crazy fics and wants to kidnap The Random Book of Randomness, the notebook in which I write many of the mentioned stories. Kat, if you're reading this like I know you are, remember to send me your Werewolf thing so I can beta it for you, 'kay?

* * *

"She wanted so badly to turn back, to catch one last glimpse of Haku. She almost gave in, but she pushed herself foward, clinging to her mother once again as they went through the tunnel. When they emerged, they found that the path had grown up; it looked like a jungle out there. While her poor, clueless parents tried to figure out what had happened, she stared into the dark passage, trying to picture his face in her mind.

'Come on,' her mother called, and she clambered into the backseat.

'A new home, a new school... It is kind of scary,' her father said, trying to make her feel better about the move.

She smiled a little. They had no clue what she'd been through, but as she couldn't exactly tell them all that, she simply said, 'I think I can handle it.' "

Ari's eyes shone with tears. She had been moved by this, the latest story. Link had as well, but he was used to - and quite good at - hiding his emotions.

"That was incredible," Ari said in a hushed voice.

Angel looked at Link, who shrugged, an apathetic expression on his face. "It was alright," he said. The russet-haired girl rolled her eyes; by this time, she had learned how to decipher what she referred to as 'Link's secret code,' and knew that he had enjoyed it as well.

Smiling, Angel yawned and looked at Ari. "Bedtime, squirt," she said, pointing to the door. The little girl whined, but stood up and shuffled off to her temporary bedroom.

"Good night," she said miserably, a pitiful look on her face.

Link chuckled. "That's not going to get you anywhere, Ari. You know that."

She shrugged, all traces of the plaintive expression gone. "Well, it can't hurt to try. 'Night." The little girl waved and dissapeared through the doorway.

**~Angel's POV~**

Have you ever felt like your tongue was going to fall out of your mouth if you said another word? ...Yeah, me neither. Or at least, I hadn't felt that way until now. Link and Ari were driving me crazy with their constant story requests. We were stuck inside almost all winter (I went outside despite the snow; I had to keep practicing with all those fancy weapons I'd borrowed), and if I wasn't preoccupied - or rather, if Ari wasn't - I was telling tales. Unless of course I was singing songs for Link; he was quite taken with my vocal abilities. I can't imagine why; it's not like I'm any good or anything...

But anyway, that's pretty much how the winter passed. Every now and then I'd bring people out of the snow and let them spend the night by the fire with a full stomach. ...What? I couldn't let 'em go hungry! It wasn't always such a good a idea to do this good deed, though. Once I'd brought in a group of travelers, and though it was mostly kids (Ari had fun that night), the mother and father were with them, like parents should be. _I _didn't think the guy was any threat, but Link spent the entire night in the corner with his arms crossed, trying to look intimidating to make sure I wouldn't be bothered. ...It was a sweet gesture. I mean, at least he cared enough to try and protect me, although the man was harmless. Anyway... I'll never forget when I found Mellcara, Sendan, Ahre and Kaiyu wandering around like lost puppies in that knee-deep blanket of white! That was right before I killed my voice singing _Part of Your World_. See... Actually, this would make more sense if I just had destinykeyblade tell you what happened.

**~No One's POV~**

"And where do you think you're going?" Link asked. It was purely out of habit that he made this inquiry, as he already knew the answer and the conversation that would follow by heart.

Angel paused, her hand on the doorknob, and turned to look at him. Over the course of her time in Hyrule, her hair had grown even longer, coming to rest at her hips now rather than her lower back. She flipped this lengthy curtain out of her line of vision. Normally she'd have let it stay where it was and peered through it, but today she wanted to see the blonde that questioned her. Despite the fact that the two of them, along with Ari, were holed up with one another until spring and had already been here for about three and a half weeks, it had been a good while since Angel had seen the Hylian's face. Lost in her fantasy worlds as she nigh always was, she saw the features of those she spoke about, not those who listened to her fables.

A smile began to spread across her face as she regarded him. She had almost forgotten how attractive he was... "Outside."

Link began to grin as well. "And why are you going outside?"

The girl put her hands on her hips and gave her famous smart-alecky look before speaking again. "Last I checked, people don't like to be left in snowstor-" She cut off when Link took a step toward her. "What's up?" she asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Want some help in your search today?"

For a moment, Angel didn't know what to say. She glanced into the other room where Ari was looking out the window at the snowflakes drifting to the ground. "Thanks for the offer, Link, but somebody's got to stay and watch her."

She thought she saw a flicker of dissapointment on Link's face, but it passed so quickly that she couldn't be sure if she had imagined it or not. He nodded in understanding, told her to be careful, and walked out of the room, leaving Angel to her own devices. The fourteen year-old stood there for a moment. Then, she put the preceding events out of her mind and exited the dwelling.

* * *

Angel shivered. _If anyone's out here, they're probably frozen solid by now,_ she thought to herself. _I'll look for a few more minutes, but after that I'm going back so I don't become a popsicle myself._

Just as she had made up her mind to get herself back inside, Angel heard a desperate-sounding voice. "No, Mellcara! You can't go to sleep!"

"But Ahre, I'm tired..." another, quieter voice protested.

_They must be close by if I can hear them over this wind... I have to find them._

The Earthling (who was becoming more like a Hylian with each passing day) began trudging through the deep snow to locate the no doubt weary travelers. After a few moments of seeing nothing but white, she sighed and turned around, finding herself face-to-face with...

"Link?!" she shrieked.

The Hylian smiled at her, relief evident on his face.

"What are you doing out here?" Angel demanded.

"I got worried. You were taking too long, and this snowstorm's on its way to becoming a blizzard," Link replied, unabashed.

The short girl began to speak, but someone else beat her to it. "Umm... excuse me?"

Link and Angel turned to see a small group of children looking at them hopefully. Three were supporting a fourth, who seemed to be injured. Leaning heavily on the others, the wounded child stepped foward.

"I am very sorry to trouble you," she began, for it was obviously a girl speaking, nevermind the fact that the two teens could hardly see through the swirls of white. "But my siblings and I appear to be lost. I-I was j-just wondering if..." The way she was stammering, she seemed to have lost her nerve, but perhaps it was just the cold getting to her. The girl gave them an imploring look, forgetting that they couldn't see her. "Do you maybe... have a place that we could stay for the night?"

Angel turned to Link. "Well, what do you know? Your coming out here to look for me wasn't as stupid as I thought." Facing the children, she smiled as brightly and warmly as possible, also failing to remember that she wasn't visible. "Of course you can stay!"

* * *

Ari's eyes widened when she saw Angel come through the door with half-frozen children clinging to her. Link was two steps behind them, the little girl who'd spoken to them in his arms. She watched the floor more nervously with every step he took. Apparently she didn't like heights very much, and being off the ground was NOT making her happy. However, it was decidedly better to be carried than to walk on a bleeding and throbbing leg.

"How did you get hurt, anyway?" Angel inquired as she examined the gash, wondering how best to bandage it.

The girl, who had shoulder-length, chocolate brown hair and appeared to be about twelve years old, cut her eyes at one of the two boys that had accompanied her. "Mr. Look-What-I-Can-Do-With-My-Pathetic-Excuse-For-A-Sword over there was showing off and cut me."

He looked at the ground guiltily, his face flushing scarlet. "I said I was sorry..." he mumbled.

Angel raised an eyebrow at him. "A sword?" she asked.

The little brunette shook her head. "It's not really a sword," she explained. "It's more like a little dagger that's no good for anything."

"Would you _please _stop insulting my weapon?" the boy begged. "I've told you a million times that every time you say something bad about it, you say something bad about me."

"Little dagger that's no good for anything," the girl said icily, and the boy hung his head. Angel, thinking that sound like something she would have said, couldn't help but giggle. Link rolled his eyes at her.

"So, what are all of your names?" Ari asked, bouncing up and down out of hyperness.

The chocolate-haired girl apologized for not introducing herself sooner. "My name is Mellcara," she said, then began pointing at the other children. "The one with the _dagger_," she said, putting emphasis on that it wasn't a real sword, "is my brother Sendan. The goofy-looking half-brown half-blonde-haired girl over there is my sister, Ahre, and the one hiding in the corner is our half-brother Kaiyu."

"Hello," the three of them chorused. "Nice to meet you."

Angel smiled brightly. "Nice to meet all of you, too!" she exclaimed, then set about bandaging the laceration on Mellcara's calf. Once this was done, the twelve year-old thanked her multiple times before curling up next to the fire and drifting off to dreamland. Yawning, the rest of the children followed suit - including Ari, who instead of shuffling off to her bedroom, lay down on the floor next to the others.

Another smile, much smaller and more sincere this time, spread across Angel's face. She turned to Link, who had been standing behind her almost the entire time. "I know what a hassle they can be, but don't you just love kids?" she asked him. He nodded, and she looked back at the children, Ari in particular. Quietly, she began to sing.

_Your baby blues  
__So full of wonder  
__Your curlicues  
__Your contagious smile_

_And as I watch  
__You start to grow up  
__All I can do  
__Is hold you tight_

_Knowing_

_Clouds will rage and  
__Storms will race in  
__But you will be safe  
__In my arms  
__Rains will pour down  
__Waves will crash around  
__But you will be safe  
__In my arms_

_Storybooks  
__Are full of fairy tales  
__Of kings and queens  
__And the bluest skies  
__My heart is torn  
__Just in knowing  
__You'll someday see  
__The truth from lies_

_When the_

_Clouds will rage and  
__Storms will race in  
__But you will be safe  
__In my arms  
__Rains will pour down  
__Waves will crash around  
__But you will be safe  
__In my arms_

_Castles they might crumble  
__Dreams may not come true  
__But you are never all alone  
__'Cause I will always  
__Always love you_

_Hey, I  
__Hey, I_

_When the  
__Clouds will rage and  
__Storms will race in  
__But you will be safe  
__In my arms  
__Rains will pour down  
__Waves will crash around  
__But you will be safe  
__In my arms  
__In my arms..._

Angel finished the song on a wavering note, and when she turned around, Link saw that her eyes were glistening with unshed tears.

"What's the matter?" he asked quietly, alarmed.

She simply smiled at him again. Then, with a yawn and after quickly embracing the blonde (Link felt himself blush), she too curled into a ball on the hard, wood floor and boarded the train to dreamworld.

Over the next few days, as Mellcara waited for her wound to heal, her siblings each chose someone to spend time with. Ari and Ahre found best friends in eachother; you never saw one without the other. The two were always running around with smiles on their faces, most of the time laughing and shouting gleefully.

Sendan, his good for nothing dagger hanging at his waist, followed Link around like a lost puppy, begging to learn from the swordsman, who, while he had at first refused to teach the child, caved within the first thirty minutes.

Kaiyu, meanwhile, sat by himeslf in a corner... That is, until Angel informed him that it was her nook and that he'd have to find another. The dark-haired boy had glared at her, which made her laugh. So she sat down in the corner with him and talked his ear off, giggling the whole time at the expressions on his face.

One of these nights, instead of telling a story, Angel (to Link's delight) sang songs instead. Most of them had something to do with love; she was a hopeless romantic at heart. Some of them, though, were about other topics, such as running away from reality. As she began this one, Angel shot Link a glance, and he understood what it meant. He knew that somehow she had escaped her reality and entered his.

_"In my field of paper flowers  
__And candy clouds of lullaby  
__I'd lie inside myself for hours  
__And watch my purple sky fly over me..."_

Hyrule was Angel's field of paper flowers. They both knew it. And they both knew that it felt like home to her.

After about a week, Mellcara said she was feeling well enough to travel again. Although her siblings whined and pouted, her mind was made up; they were leaving. Ahre and Ari clung to one another, crying their eyes out, and Sendan latched onto Link, sniffling. Kaiyu gave a cheer and ran to his sister's side, eager to get away from the talkative Angel, who crossed her arms and gave a playful "Hmph!"

"Be careful, now," she called as the children made their way to the door. "Are you sure you know where you're going?"

Mellcara nodded. "Yes, we're sure. The village is just a short distance away from here. We should be there in a few days if we travel quickly."

Angel looked at Link. "D'you think we should get going too?" she asked.

"No," he answered sharply. Angel shrank away from him, looking hurt. Link softened his tone before speaking again. "No, I don't think we should leave just yet. Winter weather is completely unpredictable here. Blizzards are bad to appear out of nowhere, especially at this time of year. It would be safer to wait until spring," he explained.

Ari looked fearfully at her new friends. "Did you hear that?" she asked. "Maybe you should all stay, too!"

"We'll be alright," Mellcara assured her. "And don't worry. We'll be heading to Lynna Village as soon as winter's over, so we'll see you there, right?"

The black-haired girl nodded. "Yeah!" she said happily. "I'll see you in Lynna." Seeing the confused look on Angel and Link's faces, she whispered behind her hand, "That's where my grandmother lives." They nodded in understanding, and the three of them waved to the group of small travelers as they set out for their destination.

* * *

That night, it was chaos. Link and Ari were shouting back and forth at one another, unable to agree. "Stories!" "Songs!" "Stories!" "Songs!" "Stories!" "So-"

"SHUT UP!!!!!" Angel thundered, unable to take it anymore. She smacked them both. "Grow up already! Honestly, you two act like five year-olds!" she complained. The Hylians looked at the floor, not saying a word. "Thank you! Now, what would you say if I told you I could make both of you happy at the same time?"

She didn't get any replies, so Angel got herself settled and began telling a story about the sea and the wondrous creatures that lived beneath its surface. Ari clapped, happy now that she was getting her stories told to her again. Link just sat there sullenly. Then Angel started to sing the melodies that accompanied her tale, and he brightened considerably. At the urging of her audience, Angel finished the story that very night, although it should have taken two. Also at their urging, she sang one of the songs again, pushing her voice to its limit to try and make it her best performance ever. As you may have assumed, this was not intelligent.

_"Look at this stuff  
__Isn't it neat?  
__Wouldn't you think my collection's complete?  
__Wouldn't you think I'm the girl  
__The girl who has  
__Everything?_

_Look at this trove  
__Treasures untold  
__How many wonders can one cavern hold?  
__Lookin' around here you think,  
__"Sure, she's got everything."  
__I've got gadgets and gizmos aplenty  
__I've got whozits and whatsits galore  
__You want thing-a-ma-bobs?  
__I got twenty._

_But who cares?  
__No big deal.  
__I want more...._

_I wanna be where the people are  
__I wanna see  
__Wanna see 'em dancin'  
__Walking around on those...  
__What d'you call 'em?  
__...Oh, feet._

_Flippin' your fins, you don't get too far  
__Legs are required  
__For jumpin', dancin'  
__Strollin' along down a-  
__What's that word again...?  
__Street!_

_Up where they walk, up where they run  
__Up where they stay all the day in the sun  
__Wanderin' free  
__Wish I could be  
__Part of that world_

_What would I give  
__If I could live outta these waters?  
__What would I pay  
__To spend a day  
__Warm on the sand?_

_Betcha on land  
__They understand  
__Bet they don't  
__Reprimand their daughters  
__Bright young women  
__Sick of swimmin'  
__Ready to stand_

_And ready to know what the people know  
__Ask 'em my questions and get some answers!  
__What's a fire  
__And why does it  
__What's the word...?  
__Burn!_

_When's it my turn?  
__Wouldn't I love  
__Love to explore that shore up above...!"_

Angel felt her voice begin to crack at the end of the note, so she cut it short, hoping that Ari and Link wouldn't notice. Her throat hurt now, very much so. But she couldn't just stop. She pushed it harder, straining to finish the song before her vocal chords gave out on her. She wouldn't be able to talk for days now, she just knew it...

_"Out of the sea  
__Wish I  
__Could be...  
__Part of that world..."_

Almost immediately after finishing her song, Angel shooed her listeners off to bed, telling them as she went to the door that she would be right back; she was just getting a little wood for the fire. Link looked at her suspiciously. What was she really doing? After a moment though, he shrugged and went on.

Angel did indeed bring more wood inside, but once she had (and once she was sure her companions were snoring), the russet-locked teen crept outside to the stable, shushing Shadow when he nickered at her. She led the stallion away from the house, into the middle of the dark woods, praying that there were no hungry wolves prowling about. About ten minutes into this, she decided she'd gone far enough and mounted the horse. From out of her pocket she pulled a small, bluish wind instrument that hadn't been used in quite a while. It was, of course, the Ocarina of Time. The Prelude of Light rang out through the silent forest, leaving behind nothing but a faint echo and two sets of prints in the snow, one human, one equine.

Morning came quickly, or so it seemed. Sunlight began to stream through the stained glass windows in the Temple of Time, creating strange patterns on the tile floor. Yawning and stretching, Angel made her way out of the Master Sword's chamber, casting a curious glance at the pedestal it should have rested in.

"I wonder what would happen if I dropped it in there?" she asked Shadow, who had warped into the temple with her. The horse simply looked at her, and she took that to mean 'don't you dare'. With a shrug, the Earthling left the temple, telling Shadow to stay put while she was in the market.

The cold outside air came at Angel in a rush when she opened the large wooden doors that closed the temple off from the rest of the town. She gasped, and the wind chilled her throat, making her cough. "Darn it," she croaked, her throat throbbing as she spoke. "Now I _really_ won't be able to talk!" She coughed again and shut her mouth, hoping her mission wouldn't be too hard to accomplish.

Despite the frigid temperatures, there was an unbelievable crowd in the marketplace. Angel milled around, trying her best not to run into the people scurrying to and fro in front of her. She scanned the tables the merchants had set up to display their wares on, getting discouraged after searching for quite a while and finding nothing she had come here looking for. The girl was about to give up when she heard a rustling sound from behind her. She turned around quickly, hoping to see what she wanted. Her hopes were not in vain.

"Hello," she tried to say to the man running the stall, but her voice wouldn't cooperate with her. It came out as a strangled noise, and she had to clear her throat to make a burning sensation go away. "Sorry," she mouthed, and the merchant nodded in understanding.

"I've been hearing that all morning," he said with a little smile. "There's obviously something going around." Quite suddenly, the tone of his voice changed, becoming much more business-like. "You, my dear, have happened upon the only merchant in this part of Hyrule that sells..."

Angel listened with a widening grin, happily handing over the large amount of rupees in exchange for her items. It was only after she had made this purchase that she stopped to think about Link's reaction. He probably wasn't going to be very pleased with her...

**~With Link and Ari~**

"Where is she?" Ari asked.

"I don't know," Link said.

Five minutes later... "Where is she?!" Ari demanded.

"I don't know!" Link answered.

Five _more_ minutes later... "WHERE IS SHE?!" Ari shrieked.

"I DON'T KNOW!!" Link bellowed.

Everything was quiet for about ten minutes. Then, with tears glistening in her big blue eyes, Ari whispered, "Where is she?"

"...I wish I knew," Link said softly, gazing out the window at the snow covered ground.

Around nightfall the following day, Ari sat silently by herself. Link had gone outside to cut more wood for the fire, even though they already had plenty. She supposed that was how he kept himself from worrying about... no, don't think the name. Whatever you do, don't.

Ari sighed and looked into the dancing flames, wrapping her arms around her legs and resting her chin on her knees. _"When destiny calls you, you must be strong. I may not be with you, but you got to hold on..."_ she sang quietly, remembering the line from one of... her melodies. She wouldn't let herself think the name.

A creaking sound met the child's pointy ears. She assumed it was Link coming back inside, and listened for the familiar sound of his boots coming down on the floor.

....

.....

.......

Something was wrong. It wasn't the same. Oh, Ari heard shoes, alright, but not Link's. He walked loudly, even when he tried to be quiet and step lightly. These footsteps, very nearly noiseless, were most certainly not his.

Fright gripped the child. Who had entered? Why had they come? Why hadn't Link stopped them? She considered running and hiding, but whoever had come in would know just where she was then because of the noise she'd make tearing through the house. Not knowing what else to do, Ari crawled to a corner of the room untouched by the firelight and pressed herself against the wall, hoping the invader wouldn't see her.

A yawn came from the doorframe - a very rough sounding yawn, as though the person's throat was hurt. Even as afraid as she was, Ari couldn't resist sneaking a peek at her unwelcome visitor. She waited for the trespasser to step into the light.... and gave a cry, jumping to her feet and rushing at her previously missing friend.

"Angel!" Ari exclaimed, squeezing the fourteen year-old tightly. Tears filled her eyes. "Where did you go?" she asked, trying not to cry.

"Nowhere," the elder girl attempted to answer.

Ari shuddered when she spoke. "You sound terrible! What happened?"

"I think I killed my voice when I sang you that song the other day," Angel replied unconcernedly, and the ten year-old shivered again. When her arm was poked, she released her companion, remembering that in the secret code, as Angel called it, a nudge like that meant "lemme go".

The youngster watched curiously as Angel began pulling papers out a bag she had slung over her shoulder, wondering what they were for. She tried to repress a gasp when she saw that the papers had drawings on them.

"What-"

"This is your story tonight," Angel informed her once she had finished setting all the sketches out in the right order. She cleared her throat loudly in an effort to make her voice sound a little less raspy. As a result, she didn't hear the quiet _creeeeeeeak_ of the door opening.

**~Link's POV~**

It didn't make sense. I had no idea where Angel could have dissapeared to, or why she had left us. Was she upset because I snapped at her? Was she tired of me arguing with Ari and couldn't take anymore of our squabbling? Had she decided that we were taking too long and gone to save Lily herself, right now? ....Or was it something entirely different?

I sighed and sat down on log I'd intended to hack into little pieces, my head in my hands.

"Where are you?" I mumbled to the air.

I couldn't tell you how long I sat there, but it was long enough for me to get cold and decide I'd better start moving again before I froze. Right as I picked up the axe, I heard Ari squeal from inside. A very unpleasant feeling came over me. I just knew someone had snuck in there and attacked her. Images of Ari lying in a puddle of blood planted themselves in my mind, and I couldn't get them out. Dropping the axe to almost the exact spot it had been in a moment ago, I started running toward the house, wondering what I would find and praying that Ari wasn't... well, you know.

A loud whinny came from inside the stable as I dashed past it. It was Shadow, neighing at me. Wait... Shadow? I stopped in my tracks. And speaking of tracks, I noticed some in the snow. They were fresh, and there were two sets. One belonged to Shadow, who hadn't been there this morning. The other.... I sprinted to the door and opened it cautiously, hardly daring to hope...

"What-" I heard Ari start to ask. She was cut off by another voice. It was almost unrecognizable, but I still knew who it belonged to, and I'd never been happier to hear it, regardless of how awful it sounded at the moment.

"This is your story tonight," Angel told the child.

Curiosity took control of me for a moment. I stepped quietly to the entrance of the living room, stopping at and leaning on the doorframe.

Angel cleared her throat and picked up one of the items, which I saw was a piece of paper. Where in the world did she find that?? ...How did she get it? I glanced over at the table I had left my rupee pouch on the other day. It wasn't there.

_That explains it._

Shaking my head, I looked back at the paper. She was holding it up in front of the fire, likely so that Ari could see the images drawn onto it better.

"This is but one of the legends of which the people speak... Long ago, there existed a kingdom where a golden power lay hidden," Angel began.

I felt myself smile. A picture of the Triforce was etched onto the paper. The story of Hyrule... That was the last thing I'd expect her to tell Ari! But why was she telling it in past tense like that...?

"It was a prosperous land blessed with green forests, tall mountains, and peace. But one day a man of great evil found the power and took it for himself... With it at his command, he spread darkness across the kingdom."

My smile faded a little. The very thought of Ganon turned my stomach. How could she mention him without shuddering in disgust? I shook my head again, trying to get Ganon's face out my mind. I smiled again when I heard the next part.

"But then, when all hope had died, and the hour of doom seemed at hand... ...a young boy clothed in green appeared as if from nowhere. Wielding the blade of evil's bane, he sealed the dark one away and gave the land light. This boy, who traveled through time to save the land, was known as the Hero of Time."

Traveled through time, fought countless monsters, nearly got killed multiple times, put up with Zelda, aka Princess Obnoxious... I did a lot for Hyrule.

"The boy's tale was passed down through generations until it became legend..."

Generations? Legend? What the heck is she talking about?? It's only been... not even a year yet! She's lost her mind.

"But then... a day came when a fell wind began to blow across the kingdom. The great evil that all thougt had beemn forever sealed away by the hero... once again crept forth from the depths of the earth, eager to resume its dark designs. The people believed that the Hero of Time would again come to save them. ...But the hero did not appear."

....................

"Faced by an onslaught of evil, the people could do nothing but appeal to the goddesses. In their final hour, as doom drew nigh, they left their future in the hands of fate."

Ari's voice was quiet and shaky, as though she were trembling. Perhaps this had been a bit too dark for her.

"What became of that kingdom...?" she asked tentatively.

"None remain who know," Angel answered. "The memory of the kingdom vanished, but its legend survived on the wind's breath."

My stomach gave a sickening lurch. What kind of twisted tale was this? Hyrule, gone? That was impossible! I-

"On a certain island, it became customary to garb boys in green when they came of age. Clothed in the green of fields, they aspired to find heroic blades and cast down evil. The elders wished only for the youths to know courage like the hero of legend..."

Not a sound could be heard after Angel finished speaking, but even if there had been, I wouldn't have been able to hear it over the pounding of my heart. At first I had to wonder what was the matter with me. Then, after a moment, I knew. It was fear.

I was afraid. Scared to death. What if things were really going to happen like she said? Hyrule would dissapear... and all because I hadn't been there when I was needed. But why not?! I was always there! Always! What could have happened to keep me from coming to their aid?

Yes, I was afraid. Not just for Hyrule, though. For the first time, I was afraid of what would happen to me. And also for the first time, I did what a normal person would do: I ran from my fears like a coward. I grabbed the door and pulled it shut behind me as I ran out into the snow. Once outside, the back of my left hand started to burn. The Triforce of Courage was glowing. I suppose that was Farore's way of telling me I needed to get over it and start acting like the Hero of Time again. But I didn't. I couldn't. Not after that.

**~No One's POV~**

The door slammed shut, breaking the silence that had followed Angel's story. Ari jumped and screamed at the top of her lungs, frightened by the sudden noise. "W-w-what was that?" she stammered, latching onto Angel.

The elder girl looked toward the exit, noticing two wet spots on the floor. They were in the doorway of the living room, and they looked a lot like snow that had melted. Instantly she knew what had happened.

"Oh no..." she murmured, and pushed Ari off of her. "Stay here," she instructed the child in a desperate tone. Ari nodded, and Angel ran out the door herself, following the trail of footprints and the continued sound of snow crunching underfoot.

_What have I done?_

**~Link's POV~**

"Link!"

I didn't stop running. What in the world made her think I would want to listen to anything she had to say to me?

"Link!" she called again. The sound of her footsteps came closer. Darn it... she was catching up to me. "Link, stop!"

She grabbed my arm and pulled on it, succeeding in slowing me down. I tried to get away from her, and she yelled at me again.

"Stop it!" Angel commanded. I ceased struggling, but I turned my back on her, not wanting to see her face.

She lowered her voice a little, softening it as well. "Link, I'm sorry. You... you weren't supposed to hear that."

"Oh, really? I wonder why!" I said loudly and sarcastically. I could practically feel her wilting.

"Link..."

"Why wasn't I there?"

She didn't say anything, and I envisioned a look of confusion on her face.

"I've always been there to help Hyrule... Why don't I come to their aid again? ...What... What happens to me? Am I... dead?"

Angel's voice was the quietest whisper. "I don't know."

"Whaddaya mean you don't know?!" I hollered. "Why not?!"

"That story came from the opening of another Zelda game, one that came after the Ocarina of Time. I... I never played that one. I watched the intro video, saw that you weren't in it, and put it away to never see the light of day again. So even if it explains in the game why you weren't there, I wouldn't know."

She was starting to cry, I could hear it.

"I'm sorry..... It was stupid of me to tell that. I should never have..."

Angel broke off and started back in song. _"Everywhere I turn, I hurt someone. But there's nothing I can do to change the things I've done. Of all the things I hid from you, I cannot hide the shame, and I pray someone, something will come take away the pain... There's no way out of this dark place. No hope, no future. I know I can be free, but I can't see another way and I can't face another day..."_

She relinquished her grip on my arm and succumbed to her tears. I felt so terrible. I'd seen her when she was inside. There were dark circles under her eyes, like she hadn't slept much, and she was clearly exhausted. And of course, I'd heard her speak. Her voice was completely shot. I wasn't sure how she was still able to talk; it had to have been painful.

And here I was, keeping her from resting, making her shout at me (or attempt to), and freezing her to death by making her chase me out into the snow. I clenched my fist. This was no way for a hero to act. Vowing never to be this way again, no matter what happened, I turned to apologize to her... and found that she had passed out, most likely from fatigue.

Wordlessly, I bent down and picked her up, holding her tightly to me as I trudged back to the house.

"EEP!" Ari cried out when she saw Angel. "Link, what h-"

"Go to bed, Ari."

"But-"

"Bed. Now."

"But-"

"She's alright, okay?"

"Are you sure?"

"Yes. Now get."

"....Okay."

She dissapeared through the door, and I sighed. I really needed to stop arguing with her. ...And I needed to focus! Annoyed by my getting sidetracked, I hastened to put Angel down by the fire so hopefully she wouldn't get frostbite or something.

A yawn escaped me. Even though I would very much have liked to go to sleep, I didn't. I sat down on the floor next to Angel and prepared myself to stay awake for the remainder of the night. I was determined to be there in the morning, to try and make up for my foolishness as soon as I possibly could.

**~No One's POV~**

Link maintained his vigil all night, just as he had intended. When Angel woke in the morning, he immdeiately launched into an apology. Or tried to, anyway. Angel held up her hand, silencing him. Then she embraced the Hylian, telling him that everything was alright without ever saying a word.

Deep inside of Link, the unseen force that had been working tirelessly stood back and admired its work. It hadn't a long time to do, as it hadn't been very good at using its tools yet. Now, however, it had mastered the hammer and chisel, and though the first two had taken quite some time to complete, it was sure that the other three would come quickly. The door in Link's heart now had two letters engraved in it. Yes, the other three would follow very soon.

_AN..._


	16. Link, You Idiot!

Well hello there, everybody! I'm back again, much sooner than I usually am! I am ashamed to admit that this is because I rushed through the chapter in the hopes of getting to the next one, which I have been itching to write for a couple of weeks now. I've already got the dialogue planned and everything; it was driving me crazy to be at a different point than the story. ...So my apologies in advance for what I consider to be a not-very-good chapter. And now, I have some news for you all! I have discovered a truly amazing Ocarina of Time fic, written by Ruthie of the Wildcats. It's called "Temple Guardians," and I LOOOOOVE it! If ever you're bored and want something to read, I reccommend you check it out!

Also I would like to inform you that what I said in the last chapter about needing OC's is no longer a valid statement. I don't write this story anymore; it writes itself. And it's decided that OC's are no longer a nessecity, which is a good thing, as no one seemed to have any ideas. However, I do have a oneshot floating around in the vast emptiness of my mind that requires an original character. If you can think of a female character, her appearance, and her attitude, I'd love to hear about her so I can finally type the aforeentioned onshot. It's been drifting about in my brain for over a month...

As always, review replies will be at the end of the chapter, after a few other things... And now, thank you to Kiarra-chan, frostclaw88, and my beloved fellow tormentor, lilydavi09! Now, I hope you all enjoy the chapter... and the little extra I've included.

* * *

Everything was quiet during the time Angel took to let her vocal chords heal. Link, who had a tendency to be taciturn anyway, said next to nothing during the fortnight of silence, preferring to watch Angel draw, her new favorite pasttime.

Once, though, he had to speak in order to keep her from getting upset. It started like this: Link, who had been outside chasing Ari through the snow, came into the house. Finding Angel hard at work on another sketch, he peered over her shoulder... and looked away immediately, blushing profusely.

The girl's shoulders began to shake with inaudible laughter. The pencil fell from her hand, creating an unwanted mark on the drawing. She gasped and tried frantically to erase it, her giggles ceasing and turning to tears when she realized that it wasn't coming off.

"It's ruined..." she whispered.

Feeling his face heat up from embarrassment, Link glanced at the illustration. "No it isn't!" he exclaimed, and Angel frowned, confused.

"But..." she began.

"That's supposed to be there! Haven't you ever noticed it before?"

She shook her head and examined the Hylian, leaning in very close in order to see better. Link turned ten shades of red, each brighter than the last, until finally Angel backed up, a smile on her face.

"You're right!" she said, again in a whisper so as not to strain her voice. "There _is_ a little scar right below your hairline!"

Link let out a sigh of relief when she went back to her piece of paper. He tugged at his shirt collar; he hadn't cooled down yet. Casting a glance at Angel, who was completely absorbed in her artwork, he stepped outside, welcoming the icy winter wind that caressed his face. He took a few deep breaths, feeling his heart slow back to its normal speed.

"I'll be glad when she can talk again, so she'll stay away from paper and pencils..." he muttered. Poor Link... He was unaware that pencils were among Angel's favorite things. Right next to them on the list, of course, was paper. At least she didn't *really* plan to use these items for sketching anymore. No, she had something else in mind, something that she inquired about soon after regaining her ability to speak.

"Link?"

The blonde looked up from something he seemed to be carving and quickly hid the object behind his back. Angel raised an eyebrow at this suspicious behavior, but shrugged and continued.

"While I was in Hyrule Castle Town, I saw all kinds of signs and stuff, but I couldn't read them. I thought I'd get weird looks from people, but nobody seemed to find it odd at all."

Link didn't seem too surprised. "There aren't a whole lot of people in Hyrule that can read, and most of the ones who can aren't women. It's actually quite unusual for a girl to be educated."

The Earthling's eyes narrowed.

"Well, it's true!" he said defensively.

For a moment, Angel didn't say anything. Then, she sat down in front of Link and handed him a piece of the paper and one of the pencils she'd bought. "Make me even more unusual than I already am, then. Teach me, Link."

"Me too, me too, me too!" Ari shouted, dashing into the room. She'd been doing that a lot lately when something interesting came up in conversation; her comrades had begun to wonder if she was listening in on them, and if she was, just what she was hoping to hear.

"Come on, Link, teach me too!" the little girl begged, giving him the puppy-dog face. Link tried, thinking that it would be difficult to instruct the ten year-old, but he just couldn't resist the power of the face.

"Alright," he said, sighing. The Hylian began scribbling symbols down onto the paper, explaining as he did so which letters they stood for, how to move the pencil to create them, how to see the subtle differences between M and W...

"You two are fast learners," Link remarked three days later as he watched Ari write simple words and Angel write simple sentences. "It took me a week to get to Ari's level and about two to get to yours," he told the older girl.

"Yeah, but you were younger, Link," she argued. "Not to mention I already know how to read and write, just not in Hylian."

The blonde stared at her. "You can't even take a compliment!" he exclaimed. "You know, sometimes, I think you'd argue with a fencepost!"

"It's happened before," she said seriously.

Link wasn't sure what to say to that one.

Giggling, Angel changed the subject. "If it's so weird for people to be literate here, how come you know how to read and stuff, huh? And where did this language come from? I mean, whose ideas were all these little symbols?"

"Well,-"

"Well what?" Angel demanded.

Link chuckled. She really amused him sometimes. "Saria and the twins taught me," he said, and Angel raised an eybrow.

"How did they learn?"

"They helped create the alphabet."

"....."

A laugh escaped Link this time. "You did know that Kokiri children are immortal, right? They never grow up-"

"I'll never grow up, either," Angel interrupted.

The blonde rolled his eyes. "Okay, they never grow old. How's that?"

"Better."

"Good. Anyway, the Kokiri have this festival once a year, and-"

"What's that got to do with the alphabet?"

Link somehow resisted the urge to bash his head into the wall a few times, but he couldn't help twitching. "If you would be quiet for a minute, you might know."

Angel became silent and pushed a few stray hairs out of her face, a sure sign that she was giving him her full attention. Link had noticed that if she was only pretending to listen, she would leave her hair in her eyes so you couldn't see the glassy look in them.

"Thank you. Now as I was saying, the Kokiri have a festival every year to celebrate the coming of their favorite season, spring. Everyone either sings or plays an instrument, and absolutely everyone dances. As they're all children, they run around and yell and scream alot, like Ari and Ahre did when they were playing. By the next morning, all of them are hoarse, so they can't talk to one another."

She couldn't help herself; Angel simply _had_ to interupt again. "So they made up all the letters so they could send messages to eachother, right?"

"Yep."

Slightly more confused now than she had been at the beginning, Angel began questioning Link again. "Well, if the Kokiri are the ones who created the written language, and they aren't allowed to leave the forest, how did it get spread all over Hyrule? ...Unless... People from the outside world are allowed to go into the forest, aren't they?"

Smiling, Link nodded. "Yes. One of Hyrule's ancient kings came to the forest one day, saw all the signs that the Kokiri had made, and begged to be taught how to write. The children were more than happy to oblige, and... Well, there you have it."

Silence reigned for a moment, broken by a giggle from Ari, who had of course been listening in. "So _that's_ why it all looks like little squiggles!" she exclaimed, and her companions bursted into laughter.

~Not Very Many Days Later~

"Alright, peoples, snow's off the ground! Let's get goin'!" Angel said loudly, clapping her hands.

Link sat up and looked at her groggily. The seventeen year-old had woken up not two minutes prior to this exclamation, and was still half asleep. "S'too early..." he mumbled, yawning. "Two more hours..."

He laid down again, but jumped up almost immediately. "W-what d'you think you're doing?!" he stammered, staring wide-eyed at a snickering Angel. She had quickly and quietly slunk behind the Hylian as he complained, then begun tickling him.

"Getting you up by way of the tickle torture I used to use on my cousins," she replied. An impish grin spread across her face. "Need I continue? Or are you awake now?"

"I'm up," Link said shakily, and Angel snapped her fingers, looking dissapointed.

"Darn! I was so looking foward to seeing you freak out again..." She glanced up at Link and erupted into cackles upon seeing the expression on his face. It clearly said 'You big meanie!' "But I guess that makes up for it!"

A little yawn was heard from the doorway leading to the bedroom. "What's - haaaah - going on?" Ari asked sleepily, looking back and forth between Link and Angel. "Did I miss something?"

"Not much," Angel said with a shrug. "Now come on, gather up whatever's yours and let's get going! That means you, too, Link," she informed the blonde, looking over her shoulder at him as she danced across the room to retrieve her weapons.

Grumbling, Link snatched his things up as quickly as possible; he wasn't in the mood to be moving just yet, so might as well not drag it out. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Angel pick up the Master Sword and Hylian shield. She looked at them for a moment, then shifted her gaze to him, a strange twinkle in her green eyes. When Link returned her stare, it became a bit of a contest. After a few moments, Ari jumped in between them and babbled something about them being slowpokes and 'Hurry up!'

Angel cast Link what would have been a lasting glance, had Ari not poked the elder girl to get her attention. If the child had not interfered, things may have gone differently. As it was, Angel didn't give Link the Master Sword. And he didn't ask for it back.

* * *

"Alright, Ari, which way?" Angel asked. " 'Cause I don't have any idea, and neither does Link." The trio was outside now, and the horses, saddled and ready, were getting restless. Both were eager to be moving again, and could not understand why their riders refused to get astride them.

"...."

"Ari?"

"Ummm.... That way!" Ariela pointed in a random direction. "...I think..." she added in an undertone.

"You think?!" Angel screeched. "You need to know, child! I do NOT wanna get lost out here in the middle of nowhere!"

The irate fourteen year-old made to shout something else, but cut off when she felt a warm hand on her shoulder. "Calm down, Angel," Link said with a little laugh. "It doesn't really matter if we get lost."

"And why not?" she demanded, swatting his hand away and putting her hands on her hips.

The blonde smiled. "You can read now, remember? There's sure to be a sign _somewhere_, telling people which way to go to reach the village."

"Yeah, but what if we don't find the sign?"

"Well.... Then I guess we'll just have to search for it the old fashioned way," Link repiled, shrugging as he walked over to Epona and swung himself into her saddle.

Growling in frustration, Angel followed suit, practically throwing Ari up onto Shadow before climbing on. "Alright, which way did you say?" she asked, trying not to sound as aggravated as she had become.

"Umm... That way, towards the mountains," Ari said, sounding a bit uncertain. "I'm pretty sure the village is that w-AAH!"

Angel dug her heels into Shadow's flanks. The stallion reared up, taking off immediately afterwards. Rolling his eyes at Angel's impatience, Link gave Epona a slap on the hindquarters. With a loud whinny, she broke into a run. At last, they were off, knowing exactly where they were going... and having no clue how to get there.

~About A Week Later~

"Anything?" Angel asked despairingly. "Do you recognize _anything_?"

"Umm... Ahaha, ha, ha. Uh..." Ari hung her head. "No," she whispered.

The palm of Angel's hand hit her forehead. She sighed. "Well, I guess we just have to keep going, then, even though we have ABSOLUTELY NO CLUE where we're going. And yes, Link, before you say anything, I do think we should get one, but since Ari doesn't know where she is, we can't."

Link looked pityingly at his companion. "You're stressed," he said.

"No duh, Sherlock," Angel hissed, shooting him a venomous glare. Link recoiled, and Angel groaned, letting her head and hand collide once more. "Sorry, Link..." she muttered, sighing again.

He smiled. "It's alright," he said in a light-hearted tone.

Although it was rather weak, Angel returned his smile and pushed herself to a standing position. "Looks like it's that time again, y'all," she announced, walking towards her faithful steed.

Ari hopped up from the ground and bounded over to Shadow, who nuzzled the now giggling child. "Shadow, quit!" Ari laughed, pushing the stallion's nose away. She let out a surprised squeal when Angel lifted her onto the horse's back.

"If we're going, let's get," Angel said with a yawn. "We gotta take off now, or I''ll end up taking a nap..."

"No naps allowed!" Ari said, putting one hand on her hip, as she was using the other to hang onto the saddle horn.

"Then let's ride!"

Shadow's ears pricked up at the word, and he began to canter foward. Epona followed his lead, and in no time the two were galloping across the countryside.

As they rode, Ari kept her eyes peeled for any landmarks that might tell her where she was. Sunset came, and the child had almost given up on ever knowing which way they should go. Just as she prepared to announce this, something shimmery caught her eye.

"Look!" she cried, pointing to a cave they had almost passed up. Angel and Link pulled back hard on their mounts' reins. The mare and stallion whinnied reproachfully, but obeyed their masters' commands to turn and gallop in the opposite direction.

"Alright, Ari, what's so special about this cave that you had us come back to it?" Angel demanded upon dismounting and seeing nothing spectacular about the cold, gray stones except perhaps for their crystalline appearance.

Ari shrank. "I... I thought I saw..." She hung her head. "I guess I was wrong. There's nothing here." She glanced around the cavern, sure she had seen something glimmering a moment ago...

Outside, the orange glow of the setting sun was fading. Night was fast approaching, and before the travelers had time to scrounge up enough wood to build a fire, it was upon them.

"Great, now we're gonna be stumbling around in the dar-" Angel began, but broke off, looking about in awe. "Wow..."

The cavern had illuminated itself, coming to life in the inky darkness. Glows all the colors of the rainbow and several shades in between were emitting from the crystal walls and ceiling, lighting up the grotto.

Little Ariela danced with pleasure around her awestruck friends, chanting, "I know where I am now! I know where I am now!" repeatedly in a sing-song voice. After a couple of minutes, she stopped and tugged on Angel's sleeve. The elder girl looked down. With a cheshire grin, Ari reported this: "I know where I am now."

"Alright then, " Angel said. "Where's the village? Which way do we go from here?"

Ari's smile vanished. "That way..." she whispered, pointing back in the direction they had come. She closed her eyes and waited for the shriek, but it never came. The ten year-old chanced a peek at the elder girl and was surprised to see that Angel was nodding her head. This was a positive action, but the look on her face clearly showed that, despite what she was saying, (Okay. That's okay...) it was not okay.

"I'm sorry!" Ari cried, offering Angel an apology hug. "Nothing looked the same, seeing it backwards!"

"It's okay," Angel repeated, patting Ari's back in a comforting manner. "It doesn't matter how long it takes, just so long as we get there." There was a tightness in her voice that suggested she was trying not to let her aggravation show. So far, she was doing an excellent job.

Angel took a step closer to the crystal walls and ran her hand along them. "I wonder what makes them glow?" she pondered aloud. Then, "Is it all just one big, shining mass, or is it made of individually twinkling crystals?" She turned to look at Link. "Get over here and help me find out, would you?"

Instantly he was by her side, awaiting further instruction.

"Try to get one of the crystals off the wall with the Kokiri Sword," she said, pointing at the aqua-colored wall in front of them. "I would suggest using the Megton Hammer to break the wall, but then the cave might collapse, and I'm not in the mood to get buried under a bunch of falling rocks right now."

Link obeyed, chipping away at the wall with the Kokiri's prized weapon. Thank goodness they weren't here to see what he was doing! Mido would have attacked him.

It took some time, but finally, the wall relinquished one of its incandescent gems. Grinning triumphantly, Link presented the jewel to Angel, who flashed him a dazzling smile.

"My questions have been answered!" she exclaimed, and handed the precious stone to Ari, who squealed in delight and held the gem to her heart.

"YAY!"

With a giggle, Angel looked back at her green-clad companion. "Thank you for getting that," she said. "It did answer my questions. ...And made Ari's day."

"Do you want one?" Link asked, hoping to please her.

Angel started to say no, as she could see no reason she would need it; it would simply be excess baggage. Somehow, though, she found that she could give him no answer but yes. Link immediately set about freeing another crystal, a deep cerulean in color this time, giving Angel a moment to think about the journey that would start the following morning. However, her mind was not on such things. Her thoughts were centered around the Hero of Time.

Dawn arrived. The sky was a light shade of what Angel and her father, who were famous for making up crazy words, referred to as purkle. This color cannot be described by anything other than the name given it. If you have never seen purkle before, you must begin watching the sky for it. Now, it just so happened that Angel was the first to rise and see this. She was slightly amazed; the Hyrulean sky had never revealed that it was capable of displaying these pigments.

_Link and Ari should see this,_ she decided, and looked at her comrades, supressing a giggle when she saw the blonde. Link was sprawled out on the cavern floor, snoring.

Suddely feeling very mischeivous, Angel grinned and crawled over to where he lay. Slowly, she stretched out her finger and began tickling his pointy ear. Link frowned and swatted at her, but did not wake. Still trying not to snicker, the Earthling poked his nose. Again, he smacked at her hand, continuing to sleep.

_Hehe... This is NOT the smartest thing to do, but I can't resist... He's so going to freak out!_

Angel moved her hand along Link's arm in a way that make him feel as though a giant spider were crawling on him. She waited for the spaz attack she felt sure was coming... And waited and waited AND waited! All that happened was that Link frowned again and rolled over, out of her reach.

"Come on, Link," she called, moving foward and shaking him. "You need to get up now. It's time to go."

He didn't respond.

"Link," she called again, leaning down close to him. "Link, wake up!"

"... ... ... .....Huh?" The seventeen year-old's eyes fluttered open. "Angel?" he asked, yawning.

"It's about time," she said jokingly, and rose to her feet. "Get up, Link. We've got a lot of ground to cover - rather, REcover - so we should get an early start. ...So get up!" she commanded, seeing that the Hylian was still lying there.

Sighing heavily, Link rose to a standing position. He yawned again, and fell a little to the right, resting his head on Angel's shoulder. "Can't you give me five more minutes?" he begged. An elbow to the ribs and a rather irate sounding "Get off me!" were his reply.

Link gave another sigh as Angel walked to the other side of the cavern to wake Ari. "Smooth, Link," he muttered sarcastically. "Now she's mad at you. ...I need to quit talking to myself."

Now that the party knew which way they were going, they made much better progress, and in the week or so it had taken them to get to the cavern, they had passed up their original starting point. Ari saw something every day now that she could identify, which let them know that they were on the right track, and most likely getting very close to their destination. But, as all of you well know, things never go quite the way you plan. There's always something...

_They were sailing. Sailing across a very large body of water that would have looked like an ocean had land not been visible in the distance._

_Link looked up at the blue sky, where dark clouds were beginning to build. "Looks like there may be a storm on the way," he warned his friends._

_"Let's hurry, then," Angel said. "I don't wanna get stuck in it."_

_Try as they might, the storm was fast. It was impossible to outrun, no matter how hard or fast Link and Angel paddled. Ari took down the sail, so that the wind wouldn't be able to push them all over the surface of the lake. _

_Rain pounded the travelers. Lightning flashed, and thunder crashed. Large waves attacked the small boat, threatening to push it over and spill the Hero and his companions into the churning waters._

_"I see ground!" Ari shouted suddenly, pointing. And so she did._

_"Oh, thank heaven!" Angel cried. She and Link doubled their efforts, trying to reach the water's edge before someone was tossed overboard._

_Ari was rescued first. Angel lifted her out of the boat and set her down in the grass, scrambling out the boat then herself._

_"Come on, Link!" she called, offering him her hand. He reached for her, but lost his balance and dissapeared under the waves. The boat drifted backward without Link's weight to hold it in place._

_Gasping for air, Link came to the surface. "Take my hand!" Angel shouted, trying to reach him. He grabbed onto the edge, and started to do as she said, but something shining caught his eye. He pushed off and headed back to the boat despite Angel's demands that he "get back here this instant!"_

_The shining object, whatever it was, was retrieved, and Link swam against the current back towards the edge. He reached up to grab Angel's hand... and was pushed under by a humongous wave. Tears mixed with the raindrops cascading down Angel's face as she watched bubbles drift to the surface, then drift no more. Her shrieks echoed through the air.... "LINK!!!"_

The thunder crashed loudly. Link, kept awake by the storm, glanced outside. Thank goodness they had found another cave to spend the stormy night in! Storms would likely be coming every evening, now that summer weather was beginning to set in. He saw another jagged streak of lightning. He anticipated the thunderclap that followed, but the scream, he had to admit, caught him off guard.

"AAAAAAAHHHHHH!"

The Hylian jumped and stared at his Earthling companion. She was sitting straight up, her eyes open wide.

"What is it? What's the matter? Are you alright?" Link asked, moving closer to her.

Angel stared at him fearfully for a moment. Then, "Link?" she whispered shakily. "LINK!" she shouted, and fell towards him, sobbing. Wondering what in the world could be wrong with her, Link caught Angel in his arms and held her close, trying (and failing) to shush her.

"Hey, now, calm down. Calm down. It's okay," he cajoled. "Come on, calm down. I promise, it's okay."

Ari's sleepy voice came from behind him. "Whazza matter with her?" the child questioned, yawning.

"Bad dream, I think," Link answered. "Go back to sleep, Ari."

" 'Kay..."

Despite his efforts to stop Angel's crying, there was no change in her behavior.

_What am I supposed to do?_ he wondered, completely at a loss for ideas. Or was he? _Maybe... Maybe I can turn her own methods against her!_

Link cleared his throat. _"Come stop your crying, it will be alright,"_ he crooned, hoping he had remembered the tune. He glanced down at the fourteen year-old burying her face in his shirt. She seemed to quiet a bit. Encouraged, Link continued the song he had once heard her sing for an upset Ari.

_"Just take my hand, hold it tight. I will protect you from all around you. I will be here, don't you cry..."_

Her sobs were ending, becoming sniffles.

_"For one so small, you seem so strong. My arms will hold you, keep you safe and warm."_ Link hugged her tighter, as if to prove this. _"This bond between us can't be broken. I will be here, don't you cry... 'Cause you'll be in my heart, yes you'll be in my heart... From this day on, now and forever more, you'll be in my heart no matter what they say. You'll be here in my heart, always..." _**(1)**

A giggle came from behind him. Apparently, Ari hadn't fallen asleep yet. "Hee hee hee... I didn't know you could sing, Link!"

Link smiled, although he knew she wouldn't be able to see it. "Neither did I," he replied. He waited a moment, expecting Angel, who had a tendency to be a touch-me-not, to pull away and lay back down. However, no such thing happened. He wondered why, until he realized that she had fallen asleep in his arms.

Link wasn't quite sure what to make of this, but as he didn't want to wake Angel, he went along with it.

_Weirder things have happened,_ he reminded himself as he tred to get into a comfortable position without disturbing his cling-on. _Although most of them have been unpleasant. This is more like it..._

* * *

"You're sure about that?" Angel asked.

Ari nodded her head rapidly. "Yeah! We'll be there today!"

At last, they were nearing the end of their journey to Lynna Village. Soon, Ari would be back home where she belonged, among her family and friends. As always, though, there was a catch.

Angel put her hand on her hips and glared at the lake that had dared to position itself between her and her destination. "Do we have to cross this, Ari?" the fourteen year-old asked, hoping the answer was no. She was getting a feeling of foreboding from this body of water, though she couldn't quite say why...

The child nodded. "It's the fastest way to the village. I mean, we _could_ go around it, but just look how far it stretches in both directions! It would take forever to get there."

Thinking that she'd much rather deal with spending another night out in the wilderness, Angel nodded in agreement. "Right," she said, defeated. "...But how are we supposed to do this? You don't expect us to swim, do you? Not even Link has enough stamina to make it all the way across!" she exclaimed, gesturing to the frowning Hylian standing beside her. This didn't quite seem right to him, either.

Ariela giggled. "There's a boat right behind you, silly," she snickered, and ran to the small craft excitedly. "This is the one we crossed the lake in last year when we came to visit Grandma!"

"Uh-huh..." Angel said slowly, eyeing the tiny sailboat distrustfully. "So how'd it get back to this side?"

"Well obviously, we put it back!" Ari said, crossing her arms. "We had to cross the lake again to get home!"

"Ari, this thing has been out in the weather for who knows how long! I don't like the idea of getting out in the middle of the lake and having that thing start leaking or something like th-"

Ignoring the elder girl, Ari pushed the boat into the water, hopped in, and began putting up the sail. She was going to leave them!

"Hey, wait for us!" Angel shouted as she and Link sprinted toward the almost runaway.

~Angel's POV~

Well, so far so good. Nothing's happened to us... yet. I hate to say that, but I just can't shake the feeling that something bad's gonna happen... There wasn't a whole lot of wind for the first little while. Good thing this boat had paddles instead of just that sail.

A few minutes ago, the wind started picking up. Wonder why? What there's a tornado or something that's on its way here? Oh, carp, I- Stop it! Stop freaking yourself out! It's fine. It's fine. We're fine. We-

"Looks like there may be a storm on the way," Link said, bringing me out of my thoughts. I glanced up at the sky, where dark clouds were building.

"Let's hurry, then," I replied, paddling faster. "I don't want to get stuck in it."

Now where have I heard that before? Something about this whole thing seems so... familiar, even though I've never been here. Even what Link and I just said seems like....

Oh my gosh.

OH MY GOSH!!

I gasped, and nearly dropped the paddle into the water. The dream! We're living that dream that I had the other night! But... But that means...

_LINK! _I wanted to scream. I knew we should have taken the long way! I couldn't lose Link. Lily was already gone, maybe gone gone. As in... well... you know. If all went according to the dream, Ari would be alright. That was all fine and dandy; I cared about her, too. But I couldn't lose Link. He... Really, at this point, now that Ari would soon be home and safe, Link was all I had. I couldn't let him go!

I surveyed the clouds. They were moving fast. Really, really fast. Oh, carp. We wouldn't be able to outrun the storm, no matter how hard we tried. That, too, had been in my prophetic dream. But why was I shown what was to come if there was nothing I could do about it?

"Link, faster!" I cried, increasing my own speed.. To my dismay, he heard the desperate tone I had used and turned to look at me.

"Are you alright?" he asked, worry etched onto his face.

"No! Now paddle faster! That storm's gonna hit any second now!"

He was clearly confused. "How do you know that? I might not do anything."

"Oh yes it will! Please, Link, just trust me!"

I knew he didn't understand, but I was so thankful when he did as I'd asked. Maybe, just maybe, we'd be able to get a little further before-

"AAH!"

Ari squealed as the first of the large waves began to try and push our little boat over. The water had turned a very dark, unpleasant color. The wind was whipping my hair around wildly, and I could feel raindrops begin to pelt me.

_Please. Please, let us make it through this! All of us,_ I added, wondering if I neglected to say that in the dream.

I felt something slide out of my pocket as the force of a wave knocked me backward, but paid it no mind. I had far more important things to worry about than a lost trinket.

Moments passed. Each was a struggle to keep the boat upright and all of us in it.

"Ground!" I hear Ari shout, and saw her pointing finger appear. "I see ground!"

Unlike in my vision, I did not thank heaven. I couldn't. Not when I was afraid that heaven might be recieving someone I had begun to care quite deeply about... That thought was quickly shooed away. Link was my friend, and I must only care for him as such. But this was not the time for these thoughts! Concentrate on getting us all out of this mess alive!

Before I knew it, we had reached the shore. Well, I call in a shore, but this side of the lake must have formed in a very strange way. There was not a slope that led from the bottom of the lake back to dry land; it was simply an edge. Vaguely, I wondered how that happened, but I wasn't very concerned about it. Throwing my paddle down into the bottom of the boat, I seized Ari and threw her out of the boat, scrambling out myself immediately afterward.

Link made to follow us, but a wave shoved against the boat, and he lost his balance, falling into the cold water with a loud _SPLASH!_

My heart was beating a million miles an hour as I waited for him to resurface. It nearly stopped when he did; his sudden movement had startled me.

"Link! Link, take my hand!" I hollered over the roar of the wind and rain. I thought I was gong to have a heart attack when, just like in the dream, he pushed off the edge and went back to the boat to retrieve whatever was shining in the bottom of it. I recognized it as the crystal he had gotten for me back at the "Color Cave," as Ari had named it. **(2)**

"Are you crazy? Leave it!" I commanded. He ignored me, but I was determined not to let things end as they had in my vision, and somehow managed to grab one of his hands. I tried to pull him back to Ari (who was screaming her head off, by the way) and myself, but he fought against me. Realizing after a moment, though, that he couldn't win, he stretched out his other arm as far as he could and latched onto the boat, pulling it towards him as I pulled him towards me.

"Get out of the water, Link!" I yelled, trying to pull him up.

"The crystal!" he yelled back, and tried to snatch it.

I felt tears falling down my face, mixing with the rain. "Leave it! It doesn't matter!"

He stubbornly refused to do so. I watched helplessly as he tried once, twice, three times to get hold of it. Finally, on his fourth attempt, he closed his hand around the gemstone.

_There's no time left!_ I cried in my thoughts as I tugged on Link again. This time, he was more than willing to climb out of the icy lake, and I struggled to help him. I couldn't let him go. Ari helped, too, rushing over to the edge and yanking on Link's other hand with all her might. Which wasn't a whole lot. But it sure helped.

Without Ari, I think the prophecy would have come true. I believe this because, just as Link was pulled out of the water, I saw it. The giant wave that would have taken him away from me.

The three of us sat there by the water's edge as the storm began to clear, as though it had been sent to test us. Now that we had passed the test, it saw no purpose to linger.

A waterfall of different emotions fell over me as I looked at my two companions. My gaze came to rest on Link, who I sort of... attacked. I knew I was crying as I lunged at Link, but I didn't care. "You idiot!" I screeched, beating on him. "Don't you ever do anything retarded like that again!"

Link pushed me off of him roughly, and I thought that perhaps he was angry, which I could completely understand. But no, he was smiling at me, albeit rather weakly. "I promise I won't," he said sincerely.

That was about it for me. I broke down, and threw my arms around him, burying my face into his soaked shirt. "You idiot," I said again, my voice muffled by the wet fabric. I heard Ari giggle at my antics, and pulled myself away from Link to glare at her. "Next time I tell you something's not safe, will you listen to me?" She nodded, and I gave her a hug.

"Well, would you look at that?" Link asked quietly.

"What?" I asked, and he pointed to a sign that I hadn't even noticed. "What does it say? I can't read it from here..."

Ari skipped over to it and, after peering at the symbols for a moment, turned around and grinned at us. "Lynna Village just ahead!" she said happily.

I almost couldn't believe what I'd just heard, but it was true. We'd made it.

* * *

(1) I dreamed this the other day! No joke. I dreamed that Link was singing _You'll Be In My Heart_ by Phil Collins. It was scary! I couldn't resist putting it in here.

(2) As I mentioned earlier, I'm not in control of this story anymore. It was my original intention for the crystal to be left behind, as I didn't see it as being very important. However, the story thought otherwise, and told me I'd let Link retrieve it if I knew what was good for me.

Kiarra-chan - Thanks! That's just the kind of encouragement I need to keep me going! Hehe... Panic At The Disco. That band has some severe problems. Just look at the title of one of their songs: _There's A Good Reason These Tables Are Numbered, Honey, You Just Haven't Thought Of It Yet _PROBLEMS!!!!!!

frostclaw88 - *takes a bow* Thank you very much! There will be more Lily in the chapters ahead, so you'll get to see more of her lovable evilness. ^^

Don't go away yet, readers! It's time for that extra I promised you! This really shouldn't exist yet, but inspriation struck me the other day, and I just _had_ to type it up. So here you go! A little something for you to look foward to when this story ends...

* * *

It was a cold, windy day. The sun, while attempting to shine, could do nothing to burn away the dark storm clouds that threatened those scurrying about in the crowded marketplace. North of this bustling town stood an imposing castle, inside which flustered attendants rushed around, thinking of nothing but the flogging they would recieve should they fail to finish their assigned tasks.

Up in the highest tower, a young girl no older than fourteen stood in front of a large window, staring into the outside world with a dismal expression on her face. For days now she had been here, gazing at the horizon, waiting for someone very important to appear. Her once unshakable faith was beginning to waver, and now, with each passing moment, her hope was dying.

She hardly felt the tears that spilled onto her pale face, leaving wet traces of their paths down her cheeks. As of late, she felt little but the sadness that filled her entire, otherwise empty being.

_A promise,_ she thought, turning away from the window to fix her stare on the portion of cold, gray, stone wall next to the ornate wooden door. Intricate designs danced along the cherry boards, depicting the treasure she was duty bound to protect, as her mother before her had been.

__

A promise that was never meant to be broken. But it has been.

The maiden attempted to take a step toward the door, to see if, perhaps, the last guard to visit the tower had forgotten to lock it. She stepped on the hem of her dress and tripped, falling to the hard floor, but managing to catch herself with her hands.

Tears again began to fall from violet eyes that betrayed no emotion. She did not sob, though she very much would have liked to. But that would show weakness, something she refused to do. She would not yet give the evil one the satisfaction of knowing how shattered she was inside.

The girl pushed herself onto her knees, then rocked backward to sit on her rump. Off came the heeled shoes that had been her literal downfall, and were tossed to the other side of the richly furnished room. Her prison was quite elegant, but no matter how exquisite, a prison it remained.

Determined to make sure she would not fall again, layers of soft cerulean fabric were ripped from the bottom of her gown, creating multiple frayed, ragged edges. The maid either did not notice or simply did not care. It wasn't as though anyone would see her to comment on her appearance. Ready now to attempt once more, she stood up, the stones of the tower floor cold against her bare feet.

...What was that? That noise, what was it? The sound of heavy footsteps and armor clinking reached the girl's ears. The evening guard was coming. Blast! She'd missed her chance.

"Dinner," the sentry announced through the door.

The young girl's voice was but a whisper. "I'm not hungry."

Concern was evident when the soldier spoke. "Princess, you must eat somethi-"

"Leave me!" she ordered, irritation lending her voice strength.

Silence reigned for a moment. Then, "As you wish, Princess," he said. "But I shall leave it here. Should you want it later, just reach through the slot..." The man's voice and retreating footfalls faded away.

Once sure he was gone, and she was alone again, the princess let out a shriek and slammed her fist into the wall. As the sentinel spoke, she'd heard the _klunk!_ of the big, iron key turning in the lock. The door _had_ been open! She could have escaped!

Her whole body shook with the racking sobs she was holding inside as she made her way back to the window that overlooked her kingdom. With a shuddering sigh, the young princess rested her frail, delicate frame against the window's pane.

As she watched, the storm clouds that had been threatening her for the better part of three hours unleashed their fury. Wind and rain lashed at the glass separating her from the rest of the world, as if trying in their own way to free her. Their attempts were in vain, and after a moment, the princess turned her attention from them to the horizon.

"You promised me," she whispered, inaudible over the raging tempest. The once great Princess Rikkali wept, wrapping her arms around herself to fend off the chill that had entered the tower.

"Crisom... Where are you?"

* * *

Hehe... Behold, the prologue of the sequel! ...Well, one of the sequels. I have found that two of my endings leave room for more, instead of just one as I had originally thought. If you wish to review this prologue, I would prefer that you do so on its actual story page. This is titled _Lithium_, as I was listening to the Evanescence song of the same name while writing it. Oh, and something I forgot to mention. I told you all in an earlier chapter that the romance in this story would be one-sided. This is quite obviously no longer correct, though Link's feelings are much stronger than Angel's at this point. Just thought I'd let you all know. Now, as I find my ramblings finished, I release you all. You are free to return to your lives. ...Hahaha! ^^ XD

Alright, see you guys later!

-destinykeyblade


	17. Fallin'

GASP! I'm back! 'Bout time, huh? I know you're tired of my excuses by now, but this time it's valid: it's called _virus_ and _crash_. So you can't blame for being so late. However, you **can** blame me for cutting this chapter short - that's right, it was supposed to be ALOT longer. But I figured you'd be tired of waiting, so, here you go. Chapter... Dang, I don't even remember what chapter this is! That's sad, but true. Anyway, couple more things to say here-

Malon: Let me say it!

Me: -irked- Why should I? It doesn't concern you.

Link: Well, that's not very nice.

Me: No, it's not, but Malon's constantly trying to steal the spotlight; it's someone else's turn.

Sora: Whose? Is it mine?

Me: ...No.

Gaara: Mine?

Me: Dream on, Gaa-kun.

Gaara: -pouts-

Trunks: Me, then?

Me: Nuu!

Midnite: Meow?

Me: -pets- Sorry, but nope.

Link: -pales- Carp, that means it's my turn...

Me: -smacks his head- You assume too much. -crosses arms- It's none of you. It is my new obsession, the general of the imperial army of Begnion...

Malon: What the carp does THAT mean?

Me: -snickers behind hand- It means, dear Malon, that we will be welcoming one of the most epically amazing guys EVER to our ranks. ...Zelgius! My love! Will you grace us with your presence, please?

Zelgius: I suppose. -steps into picture-

Me: YAAAAAAAAAYYYYY! -glomps-

Zelgius: -pained expression- ...Please **attempt** restrain yourself...

Me: ...Sorry. -gets off him- Love, would you please inform the readers of the... recent developments?

Zelgius: -small sigh- Yes... love.

All: 0_o

Zelgius:-clears throat- Readers. destinykeyblade has, in the past year, discovered the... joy... of Fire Emblem games. She has begun to write fanfiction for them, including one which involves myself. As such, her focus cannot be directed solely to this story. However, rest assured she IS still writing this one, and she would rather die than leave it incomplete. You WILL see the end of this tale.

Me: -incapable of resisting the impulse to hug Zelgius- Thank you! ...But would you mind finishing it?

Zelgius: Ah... My apologies. Ahem... While destinykeyblade has access to a computer on which she can type, the computer does not have internet access. As such, she is only able to post things when she is at either the public library or her grandmother's house, neither of which happen very often. Therefore, sadly, updates will be erratic and more than likely slow. destinykeyblade apologizes for the inconvenience to you. Please understand that it is an inconvenience to her as well.

Link: -twitching at my physical contact with Zelgius- Is he going to affect your ability to write a romance for me?

Me: -frown- Of course not, Link. I was only obsessed with you half the time I wrote this story anyway, and it hasn't turned out THAT carpy. I just have to be in the frame of mind, that's all. Don't sweat it. It'll turn out fine.

Malon: It better!

Gaara: Are you arguing with the authoress...?

Malon: No, I'm THREATENING HER!

Sora: Easy, reds...

Gaara and Malon: -glare-

Trunks: -facepalm- You've done it now, Sora... RUN!

Sora: -obeys Trunks while screaming his head off, with Gaara and Malon in hot pursuit-

Link: He's history.

Me: -oblivious to the world, staring into Zelgius's eyes-

Zelgius: -blinks-

Me: HA! Sorry baby, but you lose the staring contest! ;P

All who remain: -anime fall-

* * *

Link wasn't quite sure what to make of the change that occurred in Angel's demeanor when they entered the village. As the town's inhabitants bustled along with their daily lives, hardly noticing the travelers and two horses that walked beside them, the Earth girl kept her eyes directed at the ground. She seemed much smaller than usual, as though she had shrunk, and appeared to be attempting to blend in with the scenery. It was true that Link had never seen her around other people before, but still, he had not expected such a drastic transformation.

Ari, meanwhile, was skipping happily, weaving in and out of the people in the crowded village square with amazing ease, the withdrawn Angel's complete opposite. The child's black hair streamed out behind her, bouncing with every hop.

As for Link, he walked along like he normally did, occasionally nodding at someone to acknowledge their existence. He had learned long ago that it didn't matter what people thought of him, so long as he was satisfied with who he was. Sometimes, though, he couldn't help but wonder what a certain someone saw when she turned her gaze on him...

"Excuse me, ma'am," came that certain someone's voice, making Link turn in her direction. Angel was speaking to a very friendly-looking young woman, who seemed pleased but quite surprised to be addressed in such an unusually polite way.

"Yes, sweetheart? What can I do for- Oh!" The woman broke off when she saw Ari, who had leapt to Angel's side upon seeing that the elder girl had stopped moving forward. "Ariela!" she exclaimed, pulling the child into an embrace.

"Hi, Amberle!" the now giggling girl greeted, and returned the hug.

"What in the world happened? I heard that your village was attacked, and I was afraid that..."

Ari nodded. "Yeah, there was fire and smoke and stuff _everywhere_! Mom told me to run away, and I didn't really want to, but she made me promise I'd come here to stay with Grandma."

The young woman, Amberle, cast curious glances at Link and Angel. "Who-"

"I got lost," Ari explained, "and my friends helped me get here! They're the best." She gave them a wide, toothy grin. "Aren't ya?"

Link laughed; Angel flushed scarlet.

With a chuckle directed at the latter, Amberle pushed Ari off in the opposite direction. "If your mother wanted you to stay with your grandmother, you'd better get over there," she said seriously. "Oh, and Ari?" she called, as the trio began to walk away. "Try not to give your cousin a heart attack."

Ari raised an eyebrow. "Cousin? Who..." Her eyes got wide. "SHE'S here? She's HERE?"

A nod was Amberle's answer. Ari squealed excitedly and took off at a run towards a large, blue-roofed house that looked a lot closer than it actually was. Seeming unable to run in a straight line, Ari zig-zagged back and forth, nearly crashing into several people, but she didn't stop until she had reached the porch.

"Oh my goodness!" a red-headed woman exclaimed. She had been sitting in a chair on the porch, but was now rising to her feet with some difficulty, due to her condition. "Ari!"

"AMARI!" Ariela cried, launching herself off the ground and into the arms of her older cousin.

"Oh, Ari!" the woman cried, squeezing the child tightly. "Ari, I was so worried!"

Link smiled as he watched this little reunion. "Cute, isn't it?" he asked quietly of Angel. He didn't get a reply. When he turned to look at her, he saw that she had backed away, looking at the ground. "Hey, what's the matter? Are... you okay?" She looked like she was about to cry.

"...Yeah..." came her whispered answer. "I'm okay..."

Link frowned. "What's wrong?" he pressed. "And don't try to lie to me. I know you too well to fall for it."

The girl continued to look at the ground. "I... I..." Angel sighed. "I don't know," she said finally. "I don't know. It's just-"

"Hey!" Ari called from the doorway. Her cousin seemed to have gone in already. "Come inside, guys! Grandma wants to meet you!"

Link nodded. "Just a second!" he called back to her. She dissapeared with a swish of her hair, and Link turned back to Angel.

"Come on," he said gently, offering her his hand. Slowly, she reached out and took it, and Link led her inside.

"What were you two doing out in the middle of nowhere like that?" Kara (Ari's grandmother) asked. "Please don't misunderstand, I'm glad you were there to help my granddaughter-"

"Me too!" Ari interjected.

"-but don't you know it's dangerous?"

Link nodded. "Yes, we know. Believe me, we've had our share of dangerous situations."

"Like crossing the lake to get here," Angel said, shooting Ari a glare.

Kara's eyes grew wide. "You crossed the lake? How?"

Ari piped up before the other two could answer. "We found a boat, and I didn't want to go the long way. That would've had us getting here tomorrow instead of right now."

"You crossed the lake in that little boat with the storm going on?" the red-headed Amari asked angrily. "Ari, don't you know that storms are when the Big Octos are most active? The big waves make them angry, and they'll attack anything they see! I can't beli-"

"Amari, calm yourself," Kara said sharply. "You know the both of you will be in trouble if you go getting all worked up."

Ari looked at her cousin. "Oh yeah! When's the baby gonna come, 'Mari? I wanna meet my new cousin!"

Amari took a deep breath and exhaled, trying to keep from yelling at Ari. "It'll be a while yet," she answered. "At least three more months."

Link cast a glance at Angel. She was glaring at Ari. "Big Octos? That lake was infested with Big Octos?"

Ariela laughed nervously and rubbed the back of her head with her hand. "Uh, yeah. Guess I forgot to mention that."

"Yeah, I guess so!"

Cringing at the volume Angel's voice had risen to, Link pulled the now standing girl back down into her chair. "Calm!" he ordered. She shot him a glare, but copied Amari, taking a deep breath to placate herself.

Kara smiled, shaking her head. _Ah, to be young and high-strung and excitable. And speaking of young and excitable..._

"Ariela?"

The raven-haired child sat up straight and folded her hands in her lap, looking up at Kara uncertainly. "Yes, Gramma?" she asked politely. Her full first name rather than the shortened version usually meant that she was in some sort of trouble...

Kara smiled again. "Ari, do you know what day it is?" she continued.

"No, Gramma," Ari answered, a curious twinkle in her bright eyes. "What day is it?"

The smile on the elderly woman's face got bigger, but she remained silent. The ten year-old gazed at her for a moment, trying to figure it out. After a moment, a large grin broke over her face as well. "Really?" she said loudly. Her grandmother nodded, and Ari hopped out of her chair. "Yay!" She looked at Angel and Link in amazement. "How in the world did you get me home on the day of the festival?" the child asked. "ARE YOU PSYCHIC OR SOMETHING?"

Amari reached across the table and cuffed Ari on the head. "Ow!" she exclaimed, rubbing her head. "What'd you do that for?"

"You're too loud!"

"No I'm not!"

"Yes you are!"

"No I'm not!"

"Yes, you are!"

"NO I'M NOT!"

"...I rest my case."

Kara chuckled at her younger relatives' actions. She turned a questioning gaze on Link and Angel. "Are the two of you going to stay for the festival? It would be a pity if you missed the biggest celebration of the year."

Link cast Angel a curious, somewhat pleading glance. "I missed the Kokiri Festival..." he murmured.

The girl sighed, but nodded. "Sure. We'll stay."

Kara smiled widely, and Amari, who had been listening in, began pushing Angel up the stairs, jabbering about "fixing her up," something that the Earthling did NOT like the sound of...

**~Later~**

**~Angel's POV~**

Amari was a master of her art. In less than an hour, I had undergone a transformation as drastic as that of a caterpillar becoming a butterfly.

My somewhat tattered green tunic, which Amari had promised to repair and return, had been replaced by one of the prettiest dresses I had ever seen. It was made of a light, flowy fabric, and looked marvelous when I twirled in it. The majority of the fabric was white, but the bottoms of both the skirt and the hang-down sleeves were a beautiful light blue. And, amazingly unlike clothes bought at stores on Earth, this dress looked better on a person than it did on a hanger.

My hair, so unmanageable when I tried to mess with it, had behaved perfectly for Amari, allowing the red-head to arrange it quite prettily. Though the majority of my hair was left down, two braids on either side of the top of my head met in the center and continued down in one large plait. A light blue flower that matched the dress and had an indescribable fragrance was braided into this.

Then came the matter of make-up, which I was horrified to see existed in Hyrule. I tried extremely hard to supress a groan, but failed. Amari laughed and proceeded to smear things on my face. In the end, though, it was worth it. When Amari passed me a small hand mirror, I could hardly believe that I was seeing myself and not someone else.

Now, as great as all this may sound, there were drawbacks. Major drawbacks. For example... Link. Or rather, his reaction. And, of course, my reaction to his reaction.

**~No One's POV~**

Link felt his eyes widen when Amari appeared at the top of the stairs, accompanied by a very different Angel. He was reminded of when she first got her tunic. Again he said to himself, _This is not good._ And it wasn't.

As of late, Link had been feeling very, VERY strange around the Earth female. The feelings were accompanied by even stranger thoughts, such as how much he had begun to care for her and how attractive she had become as their travels progressed. Her new, more active lifestyle had brought about a definite change in her appearance. When they had first set out, Angel had been a bit fluffy. Now, however, she was quite slim, (A/N: She wishes! T.T) though Link didn't think she herself had ever noticed. Despite all his efforts to be just as clueless as she was, he'd seen the change.

Now, as she walked (or hopped, rather) down the stairs, the white fabric of the dress accenting her curves and her golden-brown hair bouncing with each step she descended, Link felt a furious flush rise to his cheeks. He attempted to hide it by angling his face so that it was mostly in shadow.

_Clack!_

Angel's shoes hit the floor as she came off the final stair.

_Clack clack, clack clack, clack clack!_

She skipped across the room to stand in front of her Hylian companion, who felt his blush intensify.

"...Hey Link?"

"Hm?" The blonde asked as he surveyed the room, noting that the door was open and deciding to escape to the outside world through it.

"...How do I look?" Angel asked.

Slowly, Link rose to a standing position. Angel had grown a bit, but he was still a good four-and-a-half inches taller than her. "You look... fantastic," he answered quietly. His eyes caught hers, and they held eachother's gaze until Amari broke the silence, much like Ari had done not so long ago. (Proof that the two of them are related ^.~)

"Well, the festival doesn't start until dusk, so we've got a few hours to burn before we need to be out in the sq- Oh!" she exclaimed, just noticing their closeness. "Do you two want me to leave?"

Link took a step backwards. "No. I... I was going outside for a little while." So saying, he retreated. With a last glance at the Earthling, he dissapeared through the doorway.

**~Angel's POV~**

My heart was racing. Lately it had developed a bad habit of doing that when Link and I were within a few feet of eachother...

_What if..._ I started to think. _No, that's crazy. I can't... Can I?_

When I found myself staring at the spot where he'd vanished from my sight, I decided the answer was yes. But that was stupid! Despite the fact that I'd been with him for almost a year, I hardly even knew Link! I couldn't possibly... But I was. And I had to do something about it. Other than deny it, that is, although that was something I would do constantly for the next week or so. Anyway, if I kept it locked up, I'd lose whatever was left of my mind, and I certainly didn't want that. Then again, I couldn't very well confess it to anyone, could I?

So what did I do? I grabbed a piece of paper and a pencil and dashed up the stairs past a confused-looking Amari. I found a nice, empty room, laid on my stomach in the floor, and immediately started sketching, singing as I went. What better way to get put my emotions into words than to steal existing words and use them to my advantage?

_"I don't know but_

_I think I may be_

_Fallin' for you_

_Droppin' so quickly_

_Maybe I should_

_Keep this to myself_

_Wait until I_

_Know you better_

_I am trying_

_Not to tell you_

_But I want to_

_But scared of what you'd say_

_So I'm hidin'_

_What I'm feelin'_

_But I'm tired of_

_Holdin' this inside my head_

_I've been spendin' all my _

_Time just thinkin' 'bout you_

_I don't know what to do_

_I think I'm fallin' for you_

_I've been waitin' all my_

_Life and now I've found you_

_I don't know what to do_

_I think I'm fallin' for you..."_

_And how true it is,_ I thought as I saw two overlapping hearts appear on my sheet of paper. _I'm not sure, but I really think... And it's happened so fast! And I can't tell him, or anyone else, and I don't REALLY know him that well..._

The hearts were now surrounded by white-hot flames. I suppose they signified the fires of love, though I can't say for sure. _Part of me really wants to say something, but I can't handle rejection! There's no way I can tell Link that... That's just wrong. I can sing it, but I can't say it. Heck, I can't even THINK it! ...Come on. Just... say it. Just say it. That's all there is to it! I am fall... fall... faltering. Failing._

I let my head fall into my hands. I just couldn't do it. Not yet, anyways. Yeah... Yet. That's it. I just need a little more time to admit to anyone -even me- that I... I...

A scroll had somehow wrapped itself around the hearts. In the center, I saw three words appear. Three little words. The three that I couldn't bring myself to think. After they had taken their place, I studied them. There was something strange about them... After a moment, I figured it out. They were written in English. Good ol' English, my native tongue. Or was that Redneckanese...?

"Hey!" I heard Amari call. "Where'd you go?"

I scrambled to my feet, leaving the pencil and paper where they lay. "Nowhere!" I called back, hopping down the steps two at a time and appearing in front of her with a little smile.

Amari smiled as well. "Would you mind helping me with Ari's hair?" she asked.

I shook my head. "No, I don't mind. I'd be glad to help!" _Anything to occupy my mind._

As I followed a grateful Amari down the hallway, I was very much aware of the words I had written screaming their message out to anyone and everyone who would listen. What I didn't know was that a certain Hylian had come back inside, somehow found my drawing, and was at that very moment puzzling over what were eight letters to me, but eight foreign symbols to him. Had he been listening, he would surely have heard what they continued to cry.

_I love you. I love you. I love you._

_**I love you.**_

**~No One's POV~**

Angel sat alone, half-engulfed in shadow, purposely not having a good time. Parties just really weren't her thing...

A rather out-of-breath Link dropped onto the ground next to Angel's perch atop a log, laughing.

"Well, someone's enjoying himself," Angel remarked quietly. Louder, she asked, "What in the world have you been up to?"

Smiling widely, Link sprang to his feet. "Having fun," he answered. His eyes sparkled excitedly as the town's musicians struck up another tune. "Dance with me!" he said, holding out his hand for Angel to take. She sat on both of hers.

"No! I can't dance!" she cried, shaking her head. "And I bet you can't either!" she exclaimed.

Link put his hands on his hips (A/N: Just like he does in the game! *cackles*). "Oh yeah?" he asked challengingly. "What do you bet? What do I get if I prove you wrong?"

The girl was taken aback. "Uh..." she stammered, trying to think. "Uh... I'll... um..."

"Well?"

"I'll..." She flipped her hair and crossed her arms, looking up at him smugly. "If you can prove me wrong, I'll take back my refusal. I'll torture myself and dance with you." She grinned. _There's no way he can-_

Link smirked. "Deal," he said. With a wink, he dissapeared into the throng of festival-goers, although he quickly became visible again. Amberle, the young woman from earlier, had snatched him to be her dance partner. Much to Angel's dismay, 1) Link really _could_ dance, and 2) Amberele was much too close to him.

Angel felt her face heat up as she watched. _Hands off,_ a voice in the back of her mind growled at the other female. _That's MY man!_ She blushed then, and took her eyes off the pair. _No! _she thought. _Bad brain! That is a very inappropriate way to think, no matter how bad you want it to be tru- QUIT IT!_

The song ended without her noticing. Naturally, it came as quite a surprise when Link reappeared right in front of her. She jumped, squealing as she did so.

The Hylian raised an eyebrow, but no questions about this reaction. "So," he asked, grinning, "are you ready?"

Angel groaned, standing hesitantly. "But," she mumbled, looking around. "I meant it when I said I couldn't dance. And there's all these people... and..."

Link took her hands. "Forget about them," he said. "None of them are here, okay? It's just you and me."

He smiled, and his reluctant partner flushed scarlet.

"Alright," she whispered. Link beamed and pulled her into the crowd. A new song began to play, and thanks to Link's silent instruction (a nudge here, a gentle push there) Angel made it through the dance without stepping on anyone or falling on her face.

After a while, the Earth teen grew comfortable with the motions she was performing, and stopped worrying about messing up or bumping into the other dancers. The rest of the world fell away; nothing and no one but she, Link, and the melody that surrounded them existed anymore, and the latter was soon replaced by the tune she'd begun earlier. The second verse echoed in her mind.

_As I'm standing here_

_And you hold my hand_

_Pull me toward you_

_And we start to dance_

_All around us_

_I see nobody_

_Here in silence_

_It's just you and me..._

"Having fun?" Link asked as he twirled Angel around. Unable to form words at the moment, she laughed in response, and the blonde grinned again. "I knew you would," he whispered, pulling her to him. She didn't retaliate, and his heart leapt. Could she possibly feel the way he did...?

"Yeah, yeah..." she mumbled. Then, despite trying to hold it back, a yawn escaped her.

"It's getting late," Link announced. "You don't mind leaving the festival a little early, do you?"

Angel shook her head, yawning again.

"Time to go, then."

"EEP!"

Angel squealed as Link picked her up, but made no attempt to get her feet back on the ground. "Don't drop me..." she murmured.

"I won't," Link promised. She let out a contented sigh and snuggled into his chest. Within a few moments, her breathing evened out, and Link was left in silence.

"Did you have fu-" Amari began loudly. Upon seeing the sleeping Earthling, she clapped a hand over her mouth. "Oops," she whispered, but it was too late.

"Nngh... S'bright..." Angel muttered, shielding her eyes from the flickering light of the lamps in the room.

"Oh, I woke you up! I'm sorry!" Amari wailed.

"Haaah... S'okay," Angel yawned. She gave Link a little tap. "Lemme down," she commanded. "Now, or I'll quote depressing poetry at you."

Snickering at the odd threat, Link did as he was told.

**~Link's POV~**

"So did you have fun at the festival?" Amari asked. I nodded wordlessly. I couldn't really think just then, so I thought it best not to speak and end up sounding like an idiot.

"That's good! I..." The red-head continued, but I wasn't paying attention. My mind was a jumbled mess, although I did _try_ to straighten out my thoughts. I just couldn't believe what had happened a few minutes ago. What had possessed me to hold Angel close to me like that? And why had she let me? Did she...

No. That was far too much to hope for. But I hoped for it anyway.

I finally figured out what my problem was. I loved her. That's all there was to it. I loved her. And she didn't love me. Or did she? She was so hard to figure out... And even if she did, did I deserve it? The good guys are supposed to get the girl, as I learned from Angel's stories, but were they ever really worthy of her?

I didn't know how to act. Growing up in the Kokiri Forest, you get taught the basics: how to walk, talk, read, write, and play tag. But that's about as far as it goes. The Kokiri children are just that - _children_. They don't have to worry about things like this.

So how am I supposed to handle this situation? What, in the name of the Triforce, am I supposed to do?

...Well, you're no help.

**~No One's POV~**

"Okay, this room right here is where you guys can stay," Amari said, pointing Link and Angel into the same room the Earth girl had run to to draw. The mother to-be walked into the room to point out where blankets and pillows were, as well as make a spot with some of the said blankets on the floor for Link. (Only one bed in the room, you see.)

Dressed in one of Amari's old nightgowns, made of a cream colored, somewhat flowy fabric, Angel appeared to be quite uncomfortable. Link shared her feelings. Amari, it seemed, had a brother, who was absent at this time for some unknown reason. He was a bit younger than Link, but the blonde seventeen year-old was of a slightly smaller build, making the dark tunic and similarly colored pants wearable, if not a bit too large. Although unhappy about it, Link had removed the Golden Gauntlets that always covered his hands and placed them with the Master Sword and Hylian Shield in the corner of the bedroom.

As she was leaving, Amari paused in the doorway. "You know, you never answered Aunt Kara's question earlier," she remarked, and turned back around to face them. "What were you doing out in the middle of nowhere?"

Angel glanced at Link, who nodded. "We were searching for my friend Lily," the girl explained. "She was... well, sort of... kidnapped... last fall."

Amari's hands went to her mouth. "Oh..." she muttered through her fingers. "I'm so sorry... Do you... D'you have any idea where to look?"

Link shook his head. "Not a clue."

"Who kidnapped her?" Amari asked.

"See, that's the thing," Angel said. "It's not a who, it's a what. A Wallmaster grabbed her and vanished into thin air with her!"

The woman frowned. "A Wallmaster? One of those giant, disembodied hands?"

"That's the ones," Link said, nodding again.

Amari's frown deepened. _Not again..._ she thought despairingly. "I know where your friend is," she said slowly. Both Angel and Link stared at her with wide eyes.

"You do?" they asked in unison.

"Yes, I'm afriad so," she replied, sighing. She looked at Angel. "Your friend is close. Just a few days' ride away, actually. She's in the Black Castle."

The teen gulped. " 'Black Castle?' " she repeated. "That doesn't sound good..."

"No, it isn't," Amari said grimly. "If you set foot inside that castle... well, there's a good chance you won't be coming out. However, HOWEVER!" she shouted over the shriek that issued from Angel's mouth. The Earthling fell silent. "The wizard who controls the castle does not kill his captives. Your friend - Lily, was it? - is alive. Without a doubt, she's alive. If you want to rescue her though, you'll have to fight your way through the castle, and that won't be easy."

Link's eyes shifted to the Master Sword. Amari followed his gaze and smiled a little.

"Yes, Hero," she said softly. "It will be time for you to fight again."

"H-how did you-" Link stammered.

"Know who you are?" Amari smirked. "I pay very close attention." When he still looked confused, she pointed to his left hand, where the Triforce symbol glowed with a faint light. "I saw it when you took your gloves off. Only the Princess of Destiny and the Hero of Time have the mark of the goddesses... save one other, whose name I shall not speak."

"Okay, so we fight all manner of terrible monsters as we go through the castle," Angel broke in, her mind still on her captured amigo. "Then what? How do we beat this wizard?"

For a moment, the red-haired woman was silent. When she spoke, it sounded as if it pained her somewhat to do so. "How do you beat any monster?" she asked. Tears filled her eyes. "You kill it before it kills you."

"...Is there another way...?" Link asked diffidently, spotting the glistening, unshed tears.

Amari stared at him then, and a somewhat relieved smile tugged at the corners of her mouth. "There is a way," she declared, seeming to grow a bit. "...But it's even more dangerous than killing him..." The woman wilted back to her previous stature. "You see," she elucidated slowly, "the wizard draws his magical abilities from an enchanted book. The Black Book is the source of all his powers. If the Book were destroyed, he would be completely helpless; he's useless with weapons."

Link and Angel exchanged quick glances. How did Amari know so much about this warlock?

Angel cleared her tightening throat and spoke up. "To what degree would we have to destroy the Book? I mean, d-do we have t-to b-burn it or s-someth-thing?" The girl broke off into shivers; a window had been left open, and cool night air was wafting in. In an instant, Link had grabbed one of the blankets Amari pointed out earlier and draped it around his "friend." Amari herself scurried to the window and slammed it shut, blocking out the breeze.

"My apologies," Amari said, giving a little bow, but Angel waved it away. Already she was feeling warmer, and not because of the blanket and the closed window.

"And no, you don't have to burn it," Amari continued. She glanced at the blade of evil's bane. "Books are naught but pages bound together. The pages of the Black Book will pose no threat if the bindings are cut. Slicing the spine ought to do the trick."

With that, Amari walked back to the doorway, pausing once more in the wooden frame. "...If you do manage to defeat him and save your friend..." she began, but trailed off. A smile brightened her features. "Good night, you two," she said, winking. "See you in the morning!" A swish of red hair, the _click!_ of the door shutting, and a few muffled footsteps were all besides her talk of morning that signaled her departure. Angel and Link were alone.

"...So..." Link said awkwardly, staring at an oh-so-interesting black speck on the floor.

"Um... good night?" Angel replied, just as awkwardly.

"...Yeah. Good night, I guess." Link crawled toward the lamp that provided their light and made to blow out the candle flickering inside, but Angel stopped him.

"Hold on a second!" she exclaimed, flapping her arms once again in a Ruto-ish way.

Link raised an eyebrow. "Ooookay?"

Angel scampered over to the bed... and seized the blankets, sheets, and pillows that covered it. She tugged and yanked them off the matress, then carried them to the left of Link's, erm, bed, I suppose we'll call it, and dropped them all in a big heap on the floor.

"WHAT are you doing?" Link asked, confusion written on his face in big bold letters.

The girl shrugged, straightening the bedding out and tossing the pillows to the top. "It wasn't fair," she said. "So I'm making it that way."

"...Huh?" The blonde was completely lost.

Angel sighed, sounding annoyed. "If you have to sleep on the floor, then so do I. It's just not fair otherwise."

Link shook his head. "I just don't know what to make of you sometimes..." he muttered, and she grinned.

"My strangeness just makes people love me!" she exclaimed.

_If only you knew..._ Link thought to himself. _If only you knew._

With another sigh, one of contentness this time, Angel lay down, her hands behind her head, and yawned. "You can blow the candle out now," she informed Link.

The room became dark, and Angel attempted to fall asleep, failing miserably. "...Hey Link! Link, are you asleep?" she whispered after about five minutes had passed.

"No," came the reply.

"Were you anywhere close to it?"

"No."

"Me neither."

"Clearly."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

Link shrugged, and, despite not being very tired, yawned. "It means if you were close to falling asleep you wouldn't be talking this much."

A quiet 'hmph' came from Angel's direction. "Weeeeell..." she said, drawing the word out. "How 'bout we take turns, then?"

"...Do what now?"

"I've got some questions I've been meaning to ask you for a long time, but I've never gotten around to it, and if I had to guess, it's the same for you. I figure now's as good time as any to change that."

"I see. ...Well, go on," he said when she was silent. "I'll answer just about anything."

Angel smiled, but her grin was quickly replaced by a thoughtful expression. "How do the magical weapons work? The Lens of Truth, the Fire, Ice, and Light Arrows? And the spells you got from the Great Fairies of Magic? Din's Fire, Farore's Wind, and Nayru's Love? Do you have to have magic in you already, or... What's the deal?"

Link was surprised by the questions, yet something inside him glowed with pride, knowing that she wanted to learn more about Hyrule. "The arrows and the lens are very interesting subjects," he said. Angel could practically hear him smiling as he spoke. "You don't have to have magic inside of you; the Triforce knows I don't have it in me. The arrows themselves are enchanted. You've got to be careful with them, or - let's say you were handling an Ice Arrow wrong - you might end up freezing yourself. They're pretty touchy, actually. And as for the lens... well, you need some serious coordination to use that thing."

"What do you mean?"

"While I was trapped in your house after the Shadow Temple incident, you teased Lily about her balance vanishing when she tried to multi-task, saying she couldn't walk and chew gum at the same time-"

Angel laughed, interrupting him. "Oh man, you're like me!" she giggled. "You remember tiny details about stuff that everybody else forgets in five minutes..." She giggled again and looked to the right, finding that she was just able to discern Link's shape from the rest of the black splotches that dotted the room. "I knew I liked you!"

Almost instantly, a flush rose to Link's cheeks. _WHY must she torture me that way?_ he asked himself despairingly. _It's because she doesn't know how you feel, _a little voice answered. _You tell her and she might knock it off._

_No, _Link thought at the voice. _No. No way! I'm NOT telling her._

"Link? Link! Earth to Link!"

The blonde started. "S-sorry," he stuttered, his unseeable blush intensifying. "I... sorry. What?"

Angel let out a mock growl of irritation. "You didn't finish talking!"

"Oh. Um... Right. The Lens of Truth. Well... You... You can't walk and look through that thing at the same time unless..." He trailed off. "I don't know what I'm saying anymore..." he murmured, feeling like a fool.

"That's alright," Angel said airily. "We'll just skip the lens. What about the spells? How do they work?"

Link ran his fingers through his hair and took a deep breath. _Calm down and just talk to the girl, _the little voice said. _That's what she wants. And that's what you want, too, isn't it? You like talking to her, don't you?_

"To use the spells, all you have to do is call on whoever it belongs to," Link explained, trying to ignore the voice, now attempting to coax him into confessing his feelings again. "Obviously, the spells should only be used in the greatest of emergencies. You don't want to go annoying them... and someone yelling at you while you're trying to focus on important things elsewhere in the world has to be really annoying."

Nodding in understanding, Angel pressed him further. "What about Farore's Wind? Do you call once to ask her to create the Warp Point, then again asking her to take you back to it, or-?"

"Yeah," Link said, nodding as well. "That's pretty much what happens."

For a while, conversation continued this way: Angel asking questions, Link answering to the best of his ability. A few of her questions were... interesting, to say the least. For example: "Do fairies really bring you back if you die?" to which Link answered yes; then there was "Will Stalchildren really chase you even after you've cut their heads off?" Again, Link's answer was yes. Then came something Link had not ever expected to come out of her mouth. "How did keep your sanity when you had to grow up again?"

The Hylian blinked a few times. "Pardon?"

Angel rolled onto her side and tried to look at him, but only his outline was visible, and that barely so. "At the end of The Ocarina of Time, afer Ganon is defeated, Zelda-" she growled the name, "-takes the Ocarina from you and plays the Lullaby. You get sent back in time, and everybody's celebrating, and all the Sages come back from the Sacred Realm and end up on Death Mountain. You're in the Temple of Time, standing in front of the Master Sword, and you're ten years old again. You look at it for a minute, and Navi flies away, and then you turn around and run out of the temple. Then we see you walking into Zelda's garden, where she's spying through the window again. She turns around and looks at you, and that's the end of it, but it's pretty much understood that you have to grow up again. Or rather, for the first time."

She laughed mirthlessly. "You had so much stolen from you when destiny chose you as its hero," she said, sounding almost angry. "No one, not even Din and Farore and Nayru, had the right to take from you what they did. It just wasn't ri-"

Link cut her off. "That's not how it happened."

It was Angel's turn to blink. "...What was different?"

With a sigh -this wasn't his favorite subject to discuss- Link explained that he hadn't run away and snuck into the Royal Gardens. "I picked the sword back up," he said. There was a note of some unknown (at least to Angel) emotion in his voice. "It's true that Navi left, but I pulled the sword out of the pedestal again."

Angel frowned. She knew her favorite video game frontwards and backwards, as well as the Player's Guide, but... If something so important as that had been wrong, what other holes could there be in her knowledge, unknown to her, filled in with false information as they were?

Link seemed to know her thoughts. "Maybe I should tell you what really happened," he mused quietly, as if to himself, but she heard him.

"Would you do that?" she asked incredulously.

"Yes," he said slowly, unsure what to make of her reaction. "Yes, I'll tell you." Somehow he sensed it was taking all her self-control not to tackle him.

The air practically quivered with the girl's excitement. She was going to hear the tale of her hero, and from her hero himself! What, in all of Hyrule, could possible be better?

Thus Link began his story from the beginning - no, further back than that. He told her of everything he remembered about the Kokiri Forest and the Lost Woods, and about the Great Deku Tree, and about the Kokiri Children. All his arguments with Mido, every sweet, Mido-free moment with Saria, listening to the Deku Tree tell the children stories... he kept nothing to himself.

The Hero's tale was actually quite humorous, in the beginning. Barely containing laughter himself, Link told a snickering Angel of all his blunders and unfortunate experiences, which ranged from funny to flat-out hilarious. The Earthling couldn't help commenting.

"You blinded yourself with a Deku Nut?" Link smiled serenely.

"How did you smack yourself in the face with the rubbery part of the slingshot?" The blonde shrugged.

"You got hugged by a Goron, and you think _my_ hugs are bone-crushing?" Link glared at her outline. "They come pretty darn close."

"HAHAHAHA! Ruto..." And that was all she would say. Link wasn't sure if he liked that or not. Surely she couldn't find the idea of him being chained to Princess Fish for the rest of his life funny...

The story began to take a darker turn, then. Link had gathered all three Spiritual Stones, and had faced the same challenges as he had in the game. Impa and Zelda raced by on a white horse, the latter hurling the Ocarina of Time into the moat. Ganondorf was there, questioning Link about where the princess had gone, hurling a ball of dark energy at the hero-in-the-making when he drew his sword and refused to answer. Then the Gerudo man rode away, and Link, after pushing himself back into a standing position, dove into the moat to retrieve the Ocarina.

Angel hummed softly to herself as Link spoke, envisioning him as a child in front of the Door of Time, silver-blue Ocarina at his lips, the Spiritual Stones glimmering and shining on their pedestal in front of him. She heard the grind of stone against stone as the Door slid open. Slightly awed, she saw the blue glow that filled the room when the Master Sword was pulled from its pedestal.

"And that's about all I remember of that," Link said, sounding slightly put out. "I just don't understand how things went so wrong..."

"Ganon followed you!" Angel exclaimed, and Link frowned.

"What do you mean, he followed me?"

"When you picked up the Master Sword..." she began, but stopped. "Here's an exact quote from the Player's Guide. 'When Link opened his eyes, he immediately sensed that something was different. He lay in the Chamber of Sages before Rauru, sage to the Temple of Light. Rauru explained that Link was, in fact, the Hero of Time, but when he had pulled the sword from the stone, he had been too young to wear the mantle. His spirit was contained in the temple for seven years until he was able to wield the Master Sword and dispel the evil from Hyrule. Link-' "

"I know what happened next!" Link interrupted. Angel thought that if she could see his face, he would be blushing. She giggled and almost went on anyway, but stopped quoting the book.

"Anyway, the gateway to the Sacred Realm was opened so they could put you there, and Ganon decided to step in and take the Triforce. When he touched it, he got the Triforce of Power, but Courage and Wisdom were flung away, into other people, who just happened to be you and... that woman."

Link laughed. "Alright," he forced out, trying to stop his chuckles. "I know that Princess Obnoxious is... well, obnoxious, but I still don't understand your animosity toward her."

All Angel said in reply was, "If I ever meet her, I want you there to stop me." She didn't need to specify what Link was to stop her from doing. After that, she was silent and waited for Link to pick up the story again, which he did quickly. He was eager both to attempt to put her back in a better mood, and to get past the Forest Temple as soon as possible.

"...And it was only after I got there that I realized I couldn't get in. It took me a week or two to figure out how to."

Angel blinked in surprise. "But wasn't Zelda supposed to dress in drag and tell you to go to Kakariko and get the Hookshot from Dampé? she blurted out, and Link erupted into laughter once again.

"Obviously, she missed the memo," he said after a moment. Then he skipped ahead to the temple, giving her only a brief summary of what he did there, as she already knew that part. They had seen from the first three dungeons that the makers of the video game had those right, at least, though they were most certainly off on other things.

When he came to the end, Phantom Ganon's defeat, Link paused. _Am I up to it?_ he wondered. _Am I strong enough to go on?_ He saw Saria standing in front of him on the large copy of the Forest Medallion, bidding him that farewell. He felt his throat constrict, and decided the answer was no, but he started talking again despite it. Or tried to. What he ended up doing was complaining while barely holding back tears.

"After all I did, how hard I tried, I still couldn't save her!" Saria's face, blue eyes filled with sadness, filled his mind. "She was still taken away from me! It..." The tears threatened to leak out, and his voice cracked. "It wasn't... fair," Link whispered.

Angel's heart went out to him, wishing it could wrap itself around his and keep it from shattering as she knew it must be. In place of that quite impossible action, she moved her arm to the right, and found Link's hand in the darkness. It was clenched into a tight fist, no doubt to keep it from trembling. Slowly, gently, she pried his hand open and slid hers inside.

Link seemed to calm a bit. After a few more moments of silence, he found his voice once more and continued. Without Angel's unexpected intervention, Link thought he really may have cried. How would he ever have lived that down? Heroes didn't cry; not where anyone could see them. But then, Angel wasn't just anyone. Perhaps it was alright to show how he really felt in front of her. After all, trust must exist before love could ever hope of blossoming. Still, he was grateful that she had comforted him when she had.

There wasn't much to say about the Fire Temple, so it was described minimally. However, the Water Temple was quite different story. During the recounting of this part of the tale, Link nearly broke down again. Angel's grip on his hand tightened when he spoke of Dark Link, the shadowy mirror of himself that Ganon had created.

"...I killed him."

An echo of Dark Link's dying scream sounded in his mind. The look of sickly surprise in those red eyes, of anger, of sadness, of fear...

"He wasn't just another monster. Servant of darkness or no, Dark was... a person. ...And I killed him! I-"

Hearing the note of hysteria and the threatening tears, Angel cut him off. "You defended yourself," she said firmly, and Link could feel her glare through the darkness.

"But he was-!" Link tried again, and once again he was interrupted.

"Going to kill you. Person or not, Dark was... well, dark. I understand how you have to feel... But talking like it would have been better to let him win is just retarded! You're being stupid, Link! Stupid!" She said it fiercely, angrily.

The seventeen year-old was taken aback. _Stupid?_ he thought. _I must have really upset her... She's __never__ spoken to __anyone__ like that that I'm aware of. ...And certainly never to me._

Resolving to keep some of his opinions to himself, Link once more pressed on, skipping over the Gerudo Training Ground and only giving a brief summary of what occured at the fortress. No need to let Angel know how those crazy women had literally chased him after he'd earned their "respect"...

"-and I swear that ghost was trying to get me killed. But obviously, he - it - failed, and I made it through to the Spirit Collussus. And then I had the lovely matter of 'Sheik' to deal with..."

"I hate her," Angel interrupted. "Zelda's a... word that I won't let myself say."

Silence met that comment.

"...Continue, please. You went back to the Temple of Time and dropped the sword into the pedestal, then played Requiem of Spirit and warped back to the Spirit Temple. When you went in, Nabooru was standing outside the hole and-"

"You sure you don't just want to tell it?" Link asked, amused.

"Shutting up," she said quickly, and Link picked up the thread once more. Some forty-five minutes later, the story had reached its true climax, Ganon capturing Zelda and challenging Link to come and get her.

"...Please tell me you didn't go for her," Angel begged.

"I went because it had to be done. Ganon was evil. He had to be stopped."

Link was surprised to feel his hand being squeezed.

"You could have died, you know."

"It's an occupational hazard," he said in an off-hand manner. "I could have died anytime on this venture. But I didn't, so it's all good, right?"

She didn't answer, and Link got the sense that she was mad at him for some reason. Disconcerted, he went back to his tale. "So... I... erm... I went to Ganon's castle and couldn't find a way in, and... The Sages made the Rainbow Bridge, and... ...Are you okay?" he asked finally. Her hand was shaking...

"Just talk," she mumbled.

"Not until you tell me what's wrong," Link said stubbornly.

Angel was silent.

"Tell me," Link pressed, and she sighed shakily.

"Talk," she said again. "I'm having a moment of emotional instability. I'll be fine if you just keep on with the story."

"Angel..."

"Link! Please."

"...Inside Ganon's castle, there was a staircase leading up to the tower. However, it was shielded by a barrier that was fed by six energy streams, each of which came from above a different door in the circular room..."

Angel took a deep breath, then exhaled. In a moment, as promised, she was back to herself, listening intently half the time and interrupting the rest. When at last Link arrived in Ganon's tower room, the Earth girl opened her mouth.

"Explain to me, please," she said, "how it's possible to use the _hookshot_ on a window without the glass breaking."

"...You know, I'm not sure," Link admitted. "Magic, I guess. But we're not there yet."

"Right. First Zelda has to gasp at you and look like a moron, and then Ganondork laughs at you and says, 'The pieces of the Triforce that I wasn't able to claim on that day seven years ago... I never would have guessed they'd find their way into you two!' ...Or something to that effect. Then he attacks with the little wave of darkness, and Navi tells you you're on your own, and _then_ you fight. Right?"

"Yep. Exactly right, as usual. ...I hope you don't want me to describe this battle."

Angel blinked. "Why?"

"It's bloody. I don't like to think about it. Monsters are one thing. People are another matter entirely."

"Oh. Well then. We'll skip to the part where the tower starts to collapse. Did Zelda really get trapped in the ring of fire in the Stalfos room?"

Link snorted. "This is Zelda we're talking about. Of course she did. Princesses... I swear."

"Ahahaha! So, after battling your way through the tower AGAIN, dodging falling rocks and stuff, and running like heck from the Re-Dead that took up residence on the bridge, you made it outside and watched the castle collapse. And then... dun dun dun! The noise from in the rubble."

"Interesting sound effects," Link commented. "...And this part's bloody, too. I'd really rather not..."

"Then I'll tell it. Zelda tells you to go check it out, and obedient little hero that you are, you do. Ganon explodes out from under a pile of rocks and transforms into the big monster majiggy-"

"Majiggy?"

"Yes, majiggy. Then he knocks the Master Sword out of your hand and it lands next to Zelda. Dang that sword... It needs to work its aim. It was so close to slicing her... Ahem. Anyway. So you're shooting Ganon in the face with Light Arrows and then running behind him to smash his tail with the Megaton Hammer. After a while, the ring of fire that I forgot to mention popping up un-pops and you go get the sword. Then, another couple of minutes goes by and you're still fighting, so Zelda takes it upon herself to hold Ganon down with her magic so you can... end it, to put it delicately. And then-"

"Good grief," Link exclaimed. "How long can you go without breathing?"

Angel pulled in a long breath, but Link stopped her before she had a chance to start up again. "Isn't this where you enter a gray area?" he asked, and Angel let the breath out.

"Oh yeah. So, what REALLY happened, Link? You didn't honestly give up the Ocarina, did you?"

"Sadly, yes," Link grumbled. "She said hand it over, so - how did you put it? - obedient little hero that I am, I did. But I fixed that, obviously. Hyrule Castle should have tighter security..."

Angel gasped. "You snuck in and stole it?" she said, disbelieving.

Link shrugged, which was awkward due to the fact that he and Angel were still holding hands. "Well, it's mine. I wanted it back. Is that so wrong?"

"No, I just can't believe you pulled it off!"

"Oh, come on! Have you really got so little faith in me?" Link asked teasingly. Again before Angel had a chance to speak, Link went back to the end of his story. "Anyways! Zelda sent me back in time. Navi ditched me. And I decided that being a kid again wasn't what I wanted. So I grabbed my sword, went and stole my Ocarina back, and you know the rest."

"I do?"

"You should."

"Why?"

"Because that's where you came into-" Link paused. "-the picture." He had almost said 'my life', and that might have allowed some of his emotions to slip past the shield he had put up to guard himself...

"Oh. I see," Angel said. She didn't seem to have noticed the small hesitation. "Wow. Link, that was... amazing. Your life's been one giant adventure. That's so cool!"

Link allowed himself a smile. Her enthusiasm and happiness were contagious. "Whatever you say."

"No matter how ridiculous it sounds?" she asked, catching him off guard.

"Uh... yeah?"

She was quiet. Then she said, "I think you could talk to Saria again if you wanted to."

"...What?"

Her voice took on a defensive edge. "Well, she and the other Sages left the Sacred Realm and appeared on top of Death Mountain. I bet they all went to their temples after that."

Link was astonished by this theory. "That's... an interesting idea," he managed. "Now I have to check when this is over..." A thought occurred to him. "Speaking of when this is over... What are you planning to do?"

Angel's laugh had a somewhat embarrassed tone to it. "I guess I never thought about that," she said. "Leave it to me not to plan ahead. ...Huh. I don't know. I guess... I guess me and Lily'll just have to find somewhere to live here in Hyrule."

_Say it, _the little voice pressured Link. _Say it, say it, say it, say it, say it, say it..._

_SHUT UP!_

_Say it!_

_Okay! Just shut up._

_Deal!_

"...You could stay with me," Link offered.

"Oh!" Angel gasped. "Really?"

Link smiled in the darkness, encouraged. "Sure. I can show you around the rest of Hyrule, introduce you to all my friends... And if you're right about the Sages, you can meet Saria, too."

"Link, you are so-"

"On one condition," Link interrupted.

"Condition?" Angel repeated, shocked. "What?"

Taking a deep breath, Link said, "I just told you my story. I want to hear yours."

She scoffed. "I don't have one," she said.

"Everyone does," Link replied stubbornly. "And I want to hear yours."

Angel sighed. "Seriously, I'm boring. I'm an only child with lots of cousins who grew up with her parents in the middle of nowhere, twenty minutes' drive away from a town in either direction. I was homeschooled in kindergarten, then I went to public school. I met Lily in second grade and my other best Earth friend Cassy in a summer camp when I was probably five, but then I met her again in fourth grade which is when she actually became my other best Earth friend. I like to draw, I like to sing, I like to write, I like to play music, I like to read, and I love to play video games. I know a little Japanese, and I want to learn Hawaiian, French, and Irish Gaelic. Spanish is dumb and I can't speak it 'cause I am incapable of rolling my R's. And that's pretty much it. Just a boring fifteen year-old from Earth."

Link, who had been listening intently, suddenly choked on air. "F-fifteen?" he spluttered, trying to get his breath back.

"Um... yeah."

"I thought you were only fourteen!"

Angel shrugged. "I was."

"When did that change?" Link demanded.

The Earthling blushed audibly. "Honestly, if I've been keeping track of time well enough, it was about two weeks ago," she admitted. "I didn't tell you because I didn't want you to make a big deal out of it."

Link's heart was thudding hard against his ribcage, panicked. _Noooooooooo!_ Link moaned, while the little voice in his mind shouted _YYYYYEESSSSSSSSSSS!_

_No! She's fifteen!_

_Heck yeah! She's fifteen!_

_That's bad! Shut up!_

_That's GREAT! Time for a victory dance!_

_Shut up!_

_Get over yourself! Be happy!_

_But... she's fifteen..._

_Exactly!_

"...Link? Is being fifteen bad?" Angel asked, interrupting his argument with the voice.

"Uh, n-no," he answered, stammering a bit.

"Are you okay?"

"...Oh, uh... yeah. Yeah. Fine. Dandy."

He could sense that she didn't believe him, but she didn't press this point. Instead, she slid her hand out of his and tried to find a comfortable position. "Gasp," she said. "I think I'm finally tired." She yawned. "Good night, Link."

"Good night, Angel..."

Her breathing fell into a pattern, and Link exhaled shakily. _I can't believe she's... Ugh, my luck hates me!..._

Quickly then, before the voice could reply, Link forced himself into a dreamless sleep.

* * *

Hmm... What could this last exchange with the voice possibly mean? Why is Angel's age cause for alarm? Well... YOU'LL FIND OUT! MWAHAHAHAHAH! ...Ahem. Sorry. Anyways. How bad did I melt your brains with the A/N comic? You probably haven't missed reading them, but DANG I've missed writing 'em! That, my friends, was some much-needed fun for the authoress. I hope you guys enjoyed this. Love you all (but not as much as Zelgius XD) and please review. Later! ;)


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